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"slug": "40000-people-died-on-california-roads-state-leaders-looked-away",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At a California State Senate committee hearing this year, the director of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/caltrans\">CalTrans\u003c/a>, Tony Tavares, showed a simple chart that might have caused the assembled lawmakers some alarm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was a series of black bars representing the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063749/californias-lax-dui-laws-lead-to-spike-in-alcohol-related-roadway-deaths\">death toll on California’s roads\u003c/a> in each of the past 20 years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fatalities had been falling until 2010, when the bars started getting longer and longer. A blood-red arrow shot up over the growing lines, charting their rise, as if to make sure nobody could miss the more than 60% increase in deaths.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are working to reverse the overall trend,” Tavares said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No legislators asked about the chart. No one asked the director what, exactly, his agency was doing about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the next three hours, the Senate Transportation Committee members asked instead about homeless encampments along roads, gas tax revenue, gender identity on ID’s and planning for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12068087\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 779px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12068087\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"779\" height=\"445\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01.jpeg 779w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01-160x91.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 779px) 100vw, 779px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The chart presented by then-CalTrans Director Tony Tavares at the Senate Transportation Committee hearing on March 11, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The committee chair said it was the legislature’s first informational hearing on the state’s transportation system in more than a decade. Yet only two senators — both Republicans with little legislative power in a state controlled by Democrats — even asked about dangerous driving, one following up with questions about a deadly stretch of road in her district and the other about a small California Highway Patrol program to target egregious behavior behind the wheel.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the past decade, nearly 40,000 people have died and more than 2 million have been injured on California roads. As an \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/series/license-to-kill/\">ongoing CalMatters investigation\u003c/a> has shown this year, time and again those crashes were caused by repeat drunk drivers, chronic speeders and motorists with well-documented histories of recklessness behind the wheel. Year after year, officials with the power to do something about it — the governor, legislators, the courts, the Department of Motor Vehicles — have failed to act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The silence, in the face of a threat that endangers nearly every Californian, is damning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has some of \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/investigation/2025/10/california-dui-failure/\">the weakest DUI laws in the nation\u003c/a>. Here, DUI-related deaths have been rising more than twice as fast as the rest of the country. But this fall, a state bill to strengthen DUI penalties was gutted at the last minute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When it comes to speeding — one of the biggest causes of fatal crashes — again the legislature has done little. For two years in a row, bills that would have required the use of speed-limiting technology on vehicles have failed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lawmakers did pass legislation a couple years ago that allows the use of speed cameras. But it’s just a pilot project in a handful of jurisdictions.[aside postID=news_12067175 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/250418-SFPDFile-46-BL_qed.jpg']Marc T. Vukcevich, director of state policy for advocacy group Streets For All, considers it a win — but a modest one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This shit is not enough to deal with the size and severity and the complexity of the problem we have when it comes to violence on our roadways,” Vukcevich said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom declined an interview request. Last year, he vetoed a bill that would have required technology that alerts drivers when they’re speeding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state DMV, which is under his authority, has wide latitude to take dangerous drivers off the road. But it \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/investigation/2025/04/license-to-kill/\">routinely allows drivers with extreme histories\u003c/a> of dangerous driving to continue to operate on our roadways, where many go on to kill.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Steve Gordon, whom Newsom chose to run the agency in 2019, won’t talk about it. He has declined or ignored CalMatters requests for an interview.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency simply released a statement from him in March, after our first interview request, touting modernization efforts that reflect an “ongoing commitment to enhancing accountability and transparency while continually refining our processes to ensure California’s roads are safer for everyone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neither Newsom nor Gordon has announced any major changes since then.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How a bill to fight DUIs fails in Sacramento\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For a brief moment earlier this year, Colin Campbell thought the state might finally do something about the scourge that changed his life one night in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A repeat drunk driver slammed into his Prius on the way to the family’s new home in Joshua Tree, killing his 17-year-old daughter, Ruby, and 14-year-old son, Hart.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/111625-Traffic-Vigil-FG-CM-25-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"On the steps of a building at night, two people hug beside a microphone, while rows of small orange traffic cones and string lights line the stairs, each cone paired with a photo of a person, creating a memorial-like display.\">\u003cfigcaption>Erika Pringle, at right, embraces Allison Lyman, whose son died in a collision, during a candlelight vigil as part of The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims at the Capitol in Sacramento on Nov. 16, 2025. Photo by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Campbell, a writer and director from Los Angeles, began advocating for California to join most other states and create a law requiring in-car breathalyzers for anyone convicted of a DUI.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At first he was encouraged when the bill coasted through two legislative committees. But then came the roadblocks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The ACLU opposed the measure, calling it “a form of racialized wealth extraction,” according to a Senate Public Safety Committee report from July. In California, people forced to use the devices have to pay about $100 a month to a private company to rent them, though there’s supposed to be a sliding fee scale based on income.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then the DMV\u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAnalysisClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB366\"> told lawmakers\u003c/a> that it could not “complete the necessary programming” for the law, citing possible technology delays and costs of $15 million or more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bill was gutted. California couldn’t do something that nearly three dozen other states could.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Campbell called the sudden reversal a shameful example of forsaking public safety for bureaucracy.[aside postID=news_12058605 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/01/RS40878_001_KQED_MarketStCarFree_01232020_8469-qut-1020x680.jpg']“Our lives were destroyed that night,” he said. “If these people’s children had been killed by a drunk driver, there is no way they would be objecting to this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if the law had passed, DMV data suggests that California judges would have mostly ignored it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State law says judges have to require in-car breathalyzers for people convicted of repeat DUIs. Last month, the DMV issued a report reinforcing what a similar report laid out two years earlier. Judges across the state ordered the devices just one-third of the time for repeat offenders. In 14 counties, they ordered the devices less than 10% of the time for second-time DUI offenders. The counties are: Alameda, Colusa, Glenn, Lassen, Los Angeles, Madera, Mono, Plumas, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz, Sierra, Tulare and Yuba.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>DMV officials did not answer questions about what, if anything, the agency was doing about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We reached out to all 14 counties’ courts. Only eight responded to questions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chris Ruhl, executive officer for the Glenn County Superior Court, said the court is looking at local changes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Given the light CalMatters is bringing to this issue … the Glenn Court will review its current DUI sentencing practices,” according to a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Glenn was one of a number of counties — including LA, Alameda and San Luis Obispo — that also suggested it wasn’t their judges’ responsibility to issue a court order. They said they only needed to notify the DMV of the convictions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, the law is clear: It’s the judge’s job to order the offender to use the device, said Jerry Hill, the retired Bay Area Democrat who wrote the bill.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When he worked in the Capitol, Hill said he also saw little urgency to rein in intoxicated driving.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you ask any legislator, they are going to say it’s a terrible, terrible thing,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But he said committee chairs and staff members who set the tone and write analyses often shied away from increasing criminal penalties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s where we see a lack of understanding, in my view, of the devastating effect of drunk driving in California,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Lawmakers say next session could bring change\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A number of lawmakers said they are aware of the carnage on our roadways and plan to do something about it this coming legislative session, maybe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sen. Bob Archuleta, a Democrat from Norwalk who sits on the Transportation Committee, lost his granddaughter to a drunk driver just before Christmas last year. He said he recently met with representatives from Mothers Against Drunk Driving and is considering possible bills.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/111625-Traffic-Vigil-FG-CM-27-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"People stand on the steps of a building during a nighttime vigil, holding candles and a large framed portrait of a young woman. Orange cones and small memorial photos line the stairs, illuminated by string lights, while a speaker reads from a phone and others face the crowd.\">\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/111625-Traffic-Vigil-FG-CM-06-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"A woman wearing a memorial hoodie stands behind a table covered with framed photos, candles, and keepsakes honoring a young person. Other people nearby hold large portrait posters during a nighttime vigil outside a government building, with trees and lit windows in the background.\">\u003c/figure>\u003cfigcaption>\u003cstrong>First: \u003c/strong>At far right, Fumiko Torres speaks about losing Rayanna Diaz while standing alongside other family members during a candlelight vigil as part of The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims event at the Capitol in Sacramento on Nov. 16, 2025. \u003cstrong>Last: \u003c/strong>Allison Lyman stands at a table honoring her son Connor, who was killed in a traffic collision, before the start of a candlelight vigil as part of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims at the Capitol in Sacramento on Nov. 16, 2025. Photos by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This is not a Republican issue, a Democrat issue, an independent issue — or political issue. This is a life-saving issue,” he said. “We should all take it as seriously as the family that lost a loved one.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Democratic Assemblymember Nick Schultz of Burbank said he is considering introducing at least one measure next year to address loopholes and weaknesses in state law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schultz, who started his career prosecuting DUI cases in Oregon and now chairs the Assembly’s Public Safety Committee, said he is weighing several potential measures that would address issues CalMatters highlighted in its reporting this year, including lengthening license suspensions after fatal crashes, lowering the bar to charge repeat drunk drivers with a felony, strengthening breathalyzer requirements and making sure vehicular manslaughter convictions get reported to the DMV.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>People are tired of seeing the needless loss of life on our roadways,” Schultz said. “There’s no way to legislatively make someone make the right choice. But what we can do is create an incentive structure where there are consequences for bad decisions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the absence of more leadership at the state level, road safety advocates — many of whom joined the cause after losing a loved one to a preventable car crash — are taking it on themselves to try to force change. They’re meeting with lawmakers and officials, holding public events, telling their stories.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jennifer Levi started working with MADD after her son, Braun, was killed in May while he was out walking with friends in Manhattan Beach. She said they’d only recently relocated to the area after the family home burned down in the Palisades fire, destroying “all of Braun’s pictures, videos from when he was born.”[aside postID=news_12020559 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/250107-PedestrianDeathStepback-26-1020x680.jpg']The driver who killed her son was allegedly intoxicated and had a prior DUI arrest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The worst day of my life is now my life’s work. I will not stop until California changes,” Levi said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the months since her son’s death, Levi said, she’s met with any officials or influential people she could — current and former lawmakers, district attorneys, local council members, a lobbyist, and members of the media. Among the changes she wants: to make it easier to charge repeat DUI offenders with murder when they kill someone, to make fatal DUIs a violent felony and to increase penalties for hit-and-run fatalities. As CalMatters reported in October, California law often treats drunken vehicular manslaughter as a nonviolent crime with minimal time behind bars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Levi calls her push to reform the system “Braun’s Bill.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many grieving families share a similar goal: for those they lost to be remembered by a state and society that seem indifferent. That desire was on display last month during an event in Sacramento to mark the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On a cold Sunday evening in mid-November, after a break in the rain, dozens of relatives of people killed in car crashes gathered on the dark steps of the state Capitol for a candlelight vigil. They fought to keep photos on posterboards upright in the gale-force winds. Family by family, they ascended the steps, stood above a display of orange cones lit with strands of white lights and addressed the onlookers, talking about their loved ones and what was lost — children left without their mother, mothers without their children, a wife left without the love of her life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Every day I live and I wake up and I pretend like I’m happy. Every day I wish my stairs would make noise. I miss being called mom,” said Angel Dela Cruz, whose 17-year-old son Edward Alvidrez Jr. was hit by a truck while riding a dirt bike in Madera County in 2022.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I hope we all get justice,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The event ended with a moment of quiet reflection and a prayer before the families put away their pictures and walked off, the Capitol behind them locked, silent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/investigation/2025/12/california-roadway-deaths-inaction/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At a California State Senate committee hearing this year, the director of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/caltrans\">CalTrans\u003c/a>, Tony Tavares, showed a simple chart that might have caused the assembled lawmakers some alarm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was a series of black bars representing the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063749/californias-lax-dui-laws-lead-to-spike-in-alcohol-related-roadway-deaths\">death toll on California’s roads\u003c/a> in each of the past 20 years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fatalities had been falling until 2010, when the bars started getting longer and longer. A blood-red arrow shot up over the growing lines, charting their rise, as if to make sure nobody could miss the more than 60% increase in deaths.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are working to reverse the overall trend,” Tavares said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No legislators asked about the chart. No one asked the director what, exactly, his agency was doing about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the next three hours, the Senate Transportation Committee members asked instead about homeless encampments along roads, gas tax revenue, gender identity on ID’s and planning for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12068087\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 779px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12068087\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"779\" height=\"445\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01.jpeg 779w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/120425-Senate-Standing-Committee-on-Transportation-CM-01-160x91.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 779px) 100vw, 779px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The chart presented by then-CalTrans Director Tony Tavares at the Senate Transportation Committee hearing on March 11, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The committee chair said it was the legislature’s first informational hearing on the state’s transportation system in more than a decade. Yet only two senators — both Republicans with little legislative power in a state controlled by Democrats — even asked about dangerous driving, one following up with questions about a deadly stretch of road in her district and the other about a small California Highway Patrol program to target egregious behavior behind the wheel.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the past decade, nearly 40,000 people have died and more than 2 million have been injured on California roads. As an \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/series/license-to-kill/\">ongoing CalMatters investigation\u003c/a> has shown this year, time and again those crashes were caused by repeat drunk drivers, chronic speeders and motorists with well-documented histories of recklessness behind the wheel. Year after year, officials with the power to do something about it — the governor, legislators, the courts, the Department of Motor Vehicles — have failed to act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The silence, in the face of a threat that endangers nearly every Californian, is damning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has some of \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/investigation/2025/10/california-dui-failure/\">the weakest DUI laws in the nation\u003c/a>. Here, DUI-related deaths have been rising more than twice as fast as the rest of the country. But this fall, a state bill to strengthen DUI penalties was gutted at the last minute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When it comes to speeding — one of the biggest causes of fatal crashes — again the legislature has done little. For two years in a row, bills that would have required the use of speed-limiting technology on vehicles have failed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lawmakers did pass legislation a couple years ago that allows the use of speed cameras. But it’s just a pilot project in a handful of jurisdictions.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Marc T. Vukcevich, director of state policy for advocacy group Streets For All, considers it a win — but a modest one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This shit is not enough to deal with the size and severity and the complexity of the problem we have when it comes to violence on our roadways,” Vukcevich said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom declined an interview request. Last year, he vetoed a bill that would have required technology that alerts drivers when they’re speeding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state DMV, which is under his authority, has wide latitude to take dangerous drivers off the road. But it \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/investigation/2025/04/license-to-kill/\">routinely allows drivers with extreme histories\u003c/a> of dangerous driving to continue to operate on our roadways, where many go on to kill.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Steve Gordon, whom Newsom chose to run the agency in 2019, won’t talk about it. He has declined or ignored CalMatters requests for an interview.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency simply released a statement from him in March, after our first interview request, touting modernization efforts that reflect an “ongoing commitment to enhancing accountability and transparency while continually refining our processes to ensure California’s roads are safer for everyone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neither Newsom nor Gordon has announced any major changes since then.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How a bill to fight DUIs fails in Sacramento\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For a brief moment earlier this year, Colin Campbell thought the state might finally do something about the scourge that changed his life one night in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A repeat drunk driver slammed into his Prius on the way to the family’s new home in Joshua Tree, killing his 17-year-old daughter, Ruby, and 14-year-old son, Hart.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/111625-Traffic-Vigil-FG-CM-25-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"On the steps of a building at night, two people hug beside a microphone, while rows of small orange traffic cones and string lights line the stairs, each cone paired with a photo of a person, creating a memorial-like display.\">\u003cfigcaption>Erika Pringle, at right, embraces Allison Lyman, whose son died in a collision, during a candlelight vigil as part of The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims at the Capitol in Sacramento on Nov. 16, 2025. Photo by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Campbell, a writer and director from Los Angeles, began advocating for California to join most other states and create a law requiring in-car breathalyzers for anyone convicted of a DUI.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At first he was encouraged when the bill coasted through two legislative committees. But then came the roadblocks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The ACLU opposed the measure, calling it “a form of racialized wealth extraction,” according to a Senate Public Safety Committee report from July. In California, people forced to use the devices have to pay about $100 a month to a private company to rent them, though there’s supposed to be a sliding fee scale based on income.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then the DMV\u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAnalysisClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB366\"> told lawmakers\u003c/a> that it could not “complete the necessary programming” for the law, citing possible technology delays and costs of $15 million or more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bill was gutted. California couldn’t do something that nearly three dozen other states could.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Campbell called the sudden reversal a shameful example of forsaking public safety for bureaucracy.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Our lives were destroyed that night,” he said. “If these people’s children had been killed by a drunk driver, there is no way they would be objecting to this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if the law had passed, DMV data suggests that California judges would have mostly ignored it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State law says judges have to require in-car breathalyzers for people convicted of repeat DUIs. Last month, the DMV issued a report reinforcing what a similar report laid out two years earlier. Judges across the state ordered the devices just one-third of the time for repeat offenders. In 14 counties, they ordered the devices less than 10% of the time for second-time DUI offenders. The counties are: Alameda, Colusa, Glenn, Lassen, Los Angeles, Madera, Mono, Plumas, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz, Sierra, Tulare and Yuba.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>DMV officials did not answer questions about what, if anything, the agency was doing about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We reached out to all 14 counties’ courts. Only eight responded to questions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chris Ruhl, executive officer for the Glenn County Superior Court, said the court is looking at local changes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Given the light CalMatters is bringing to this issue … the Glenn Court will review its current DUI sentencing practices,” according to a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Glenn was one of a number of counties — including LA, Alameda and San Luis Obispo — that also suggested it wasn’t their judges’ responsibility to issue a court order. They said they only needed to notify the DMV of the convictions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, the law is clear: It’s the judge’s job to order the offender to use the device, said Jerry Hill, the retired Bay Area Democrat who wrote the bill.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When he worked in the Capitol, Hill said he also saw little urgency to rein in intoxicated driving.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you ask any legislator, they are going to say it’s a terrible, terrible thing,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But he said committee chairs and staff members who set the tone and write analyses often shied away from increasing criminal penalties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s where we see a lack of understanding, in my view, of the devastating effect of drunk driving in California,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Lawmakers say next session could bring change\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A number of lawmakers said they are aware of the carnage on our roadways and plan to do something about it this coming legislative session, maybe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sen. Bob Archuleta, a Democrat from Norwalk who sits on the Transportation Committee, lost his granddaughter to a drunk driver just before Christmas last year. He said he recently met with representatives from Mothers Against Drunk Driving and is considering possible bills.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/111625-Traffic-Vigil-FG-CM-27-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"People stand on the steps of a building during a nighttime vigil, holding candles and a large framed portrait of a young woman. Orange cones and small memorial photos line the stairs, illuminated by string lights, while a speaker reads from a phone and others face the crowd.\">\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/111625-Traffic-Vigil-FG-CM-06-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"A woman wearing a memorial hoodie stands behind a table covered with framed photos, candles, and keepsakes honoring a young person. Other people nearby hold large portrait posters during a nighttime vigil outside a government building, with trees and lit windows in the background.\">\u003c/figure>\u003cfigcaption>\u003cstrong>First: \u003c/strong>At far right, Fumiko Torres speaks about losing Rayanna Diaz while standing alongside other family members during a candlelight vigil as part of The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims event at the Capitol in Sacramento on Nov. 16, 2025. \u003cstrong>Last: \u003c/strong>Allison Lyman stands at a table honoring her son Connor, who was killed in a traffic collision, before the start of a candlelight vigil as part of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims at the Capitol in Sacramento on Nov. 16, 2025. Photos by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This is not a Republican issue, a Democrat issue, an independent issue — or political issue. This is a life-saving issue,” he said. “We should all take it as seriously as the family that lost a loved one.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Democratic Assemblymember Nick Schultz of Burbank said he is considering introducing at least one measure next year to address loopholes and weaknesses in state law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schultz, who started his career prosecuting DUI cases in Oregon and now chairs the Assembly’s Public Safety Committee, said he is weighing several potential measures that would address issues CalMatters highlighted in its reporting this year, including lengthening license suspensions after fatal crashes, lowering the bar to charge repeat drunk drivers with a felony, strengthening breathalyzer requirements and making sure vehicular manslaughter convictions get reported to the DMV.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>People are tired of seeing the needless loss of life on our roadways,” Schultz said. “There’s no way to legislatively make someone make the right choice. But what we can do is create an incentive structure where there are consequences for bad decisions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the absence of more leadership at the state level, road safety advocates — many of whom joined the cause after losing a loved one to a preventable car crash — are taking it on themselves to try to force change. They’re meeting with lawmakers and officials, holding public events, telling their stories.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jennifer Levi started working with MADD after her son, Braun, was killed in May while he was out walking with friends in Manhattan Beach. She said they’d only recently relocated to the area after the family home burned down in the Palisades fire, destroying “all of Braun’s pictures, videos from when he was born.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The driver who killed her son was allegedly intoxicated and had a prior DUI arrest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The worst day of my life is now my life’s work. I will not stop until California changes,” Levi said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the months since her son’s death, Levi said, she’s met with any officials or influential people she could — current and former lawmakers, district attorneys, local council members, a lobbyist, and members of the media. Among the changes she wants: to make it easier to charge repeat DUI offenders with murder when they kill someone, to make fatal DUIs a violent felony and to increase penalties for hit-and-run fatalities. As CalMatters reported in October, California law often treats drunken vehicular manslaughter as a nonviolent crime with minimal time behind bars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Levi calls her push to reform the system “Braun’s Bill.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many grieving families share a similar goal: for those they lost to be remembered by a state and society that seem indifferent. That desire was on display last month during an event in Sacramento to mark the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On a cold Sunday evening in mid-November, after a break in the rain, dozens of relatives of people killed in car crashes gathered on the dark steps of the state Capitol for a candlelight vigil. They fought to keep photos on posterboards upright in the gale-force winds. Family by family, they ascended the steps, stood above a display of orange cones lit with strands of white lights and addressed the onlookers, talking about their loved ones and what was lost — children left without their mother, mothers without their children, a wife left without the love of her life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Every day I live and I wake up and I pretend like I’m happy. Every day I wish my stairs would make noise. I miss being called mom,” said Angel Dela Cruz, whose 17-year-old son Edward Alvidrez Jr. was hit by a truck while riding a dirt bike in Madera County in 2022.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I hope we all get justice,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The event ended with a moment of quiet reflection and a prayer before the families put away their pictures and walked off, the Capitol behind them locked, silent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/investigation/2025/12/california-roadway-deaths-inaction/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two recently filed lawsuits accuse the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development of illegally going over Congress’ head to make massive changes to the way \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/housing\">federal homelessness funds\u003c/a> are distributed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“HUD’s new grant rules would effectively defund permanent supportive housing and rapid rehousing programs across the nation, eliminating proven tools that help residents exit homelessness sustainably,” Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti said in a statement. “This is another instance of the Trump administration prioritizing its political agenda above the needs of our most vulnerable community members.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santa Clara County and San Francisco \u003ca href=\"https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/NAEH-v-HUD-25-cv-636-Complaint-with-civil-cover-sheet-and-summons.pdf\">sued the Trump administration\u003c/a> this week, in conjunction with the National Alliance to End Homelessness and the National Low Income Housing Coalition. A \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press-docs/001_Cmplt.pdf\">separate lawsuit\u003c/a> was filed last week by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration and a handful of other states. It marked the 47th time California sued the Trump administration in 44 weeks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, homeless service providers are waiting anxiously to see how the litigation plays out and wondering if the impending legal battle will further delay the money they desperately need.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11954915\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11954915\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02.jpg\" alt=\"A unhoused encampment is seen in Los Angeles. There are tents, belongings scattered and stacked, RVs in the background, a random shopping cart, and more. Many blue tarps cover the tops of the encampment area.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An encampment, in Los Angeles on June 20, 2023. \u003ccite>(Julie A Hotz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s just the matter of how long it’s going to take that concerns me,” said Robert Ratner, director of Santa Cruz County’s Housing for Health, which coordinates the county’s homelessness response. “Because while we’re waiting for these issues to get resolved, we have programs that are going to run out of money to support people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Housing and Urban Development did not respond to a request for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement last month, HUD Secretary Scott Turner said the changes are aimed at “stopping the Biden-era slush fund that fueled the homelessness crisis, shut out faith-based providers simply because of their values, and incentivized never-ending government dependency.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At issue are \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletter/trump-homeless-funds-cuts/\">changes\u003c/a> the Trump administration made to its funding policy last month. Jurisdictions applying for a piece of about $4 billion in federal homelessness funds now can’t spend more than 30% of that money on permanent housing — a significant decrease. Los Angeles County, for example, currently spends more than 80% on permanent housing. Instead, the federal government wants localities to prioritize emergency shelter and temporary housing programs that require participants to be sober or participate in treatment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While shelters offer a temporary respite from the streets, permanent housing can end someone’s homelessness. For years, the federal government has prioritized funding permanent housing using the “housing first” method — a strategy that moves people into housing as quickly as possible, without requiring them to first get sober or agree to addiction treatment. Veering away from both of those principles marks a major policy shift.[aside postID=news_12065708 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250325-ApartmentsonWestside-06-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg']Last year, California communities won more than $683 million in federal homelessness funds through what is called the Continuum of Care program. About 90% of that went to permanent housing projects, which currently house tens of thousands of Californians, according to Newsom. The new rule threatens to put those people back out onto the street, he said in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/11/25/governor-newsom-sues-trump-administration-for-cruel-cuts-to-homeless-housing-funding-that-will-hurt-families/\">news release\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new policy also prohibits the use of federal funds for diversity and inclusion efforts, support of transgender clients, and use of “harm reduction” strategies that seek to reduce overdose deaths by helping people in active addiction use drugs more safely. And it gives preference for projects in cities, counties and states that ban homeless encampments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both lawsuits allege that the Trump administration’s funding changes violate the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution by defying the rules Congress set out for distributing the funds. Congress authorized a two-year grant cycle in 2024, meaning local jurisdictions wouldn’t have to reapply for funds in 2025. The Trump administration flouted that decision when it suddenly forced jurisdictions to reapply, the lawsuits allege.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuits also claim the administration didn’t go through proper protocol before enacting the changes to its funding strategy, which would have included giving cities and counties more time to comply with the new rules, and allowing stakeholders to comment on the changes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Santa Cruz County, Ratner is of two minds about the lawsuits. On one hand, he believes the abrupt way the Trump administration rolled out the funding changes was “very inappropriate.” But he worries a lengthy court battle could tie up funds his county needs to pay people’s rents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The National Alliance to End Homelessness \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2025/09/ca-homelessness-funding-population/\">sued the Trump administration\u003c/a> over similar allegations tied to a smaller, $75 million pot of homelessness funding in September. A judge \u003ca href=\"https://endhomelessness.org/media/court-blocks-trump-vance-administrations-unlawful-housing-grant-restrictions/\">sided with the Alliance\u003c/a>, and temporarily barred the federal government from distributing those funds. But now that money is frozen, unable to help unhoused residents as the case moves forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“While we’re waiting for these issues to get resolved, we have programs that are going to run out of money to support people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ccite>Robert Ratner, director, Housing for Health\u003c/cite>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Ratner worries that could happen again in this case. Santa Cruz County is set to start hitting serious financial problems as soon as February, Ratner said. That’s when a $1.2 million supportive housing grant, which currently houses about 50 people in different apartments around the county, is set to expire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Trump administration doesn’t expect to start awarding Continuum of Care money until May. It’s unclear how the lawsuits will affect that timeline.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, Ratner and other homeless service providers are trying to remain optimistic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At this point, we don’t know how long the litigation process will take, but we’re hopeful it leads to a more workable path forward,” Sacramento Steps Forward CEO Lisa Bates said in a statement. “Of course, any delay in federal funding would have real impacts on communities across the country, including ours, to operate shelters, rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing, and essential system coordination.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2025/12/homelessness-funding-lawsuits/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two recently filed lawsuits accuse the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development of illegally going over Congress’ head to make massive changes to the way \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/housing\">federal homelessness funds\u003c/a> are distributed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“HUD’s new grant rules would effectively defund permanent supportive housing and rapid rehousing programs across the nation, eliminating proven tools that help residents exit homelessness sustainably,” Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti said in a statement. “This is another instance of the Trump administration prioritizing its political agenda above the needs of our most vulnerable community members.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santa Clara County and San Francisco \u003ca href=\"https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/NAEH-v-HUD-25-cv-636-Complaint-with-civil-cover-sheet-and-summons.pdf\">sued the Trump administration\u003c/a> this week, in conjunction with the National Alliance to End Homelessness and the National Low Income Housing Coalition. A \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press-docs/001_Cmplt.pdf\">separate lawsuit\u003c/a> was filed last week by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration and a handful of other states. It marked the 47th time California sued the Trump administration in 44 weeks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, homeless service providers are waiting anxiously to see how the litigation plays out and wondering if the impending legal battle will further delay the money they desperately need.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11954915\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11954915\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02.jpg\" alt=\"A unhoused encampment is seen in Los Angeles. There are tents, belongings scattered and stacked, RVs in the background, a random shopping cart, and more. Many blue tarps cover the tops of the encampment area.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/CalMattersUnhousedLA02-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An encampment, in Los Angeles on June 20, 2023. \u003ccite>(Julie A Hotz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s just the matter of how long it’s going to take that concerns me,” said Robert Ratner, director of Santa Cruz County’s Housing for Health, which coordinates the county’s homelessness response. “Because while we’re waiting for these issues to get resolved, we have programs that are going to run out of money to support people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Housing and Urban Development did not respond to a request for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement last month, HUD Secretary Scott Turner said the changes are aimed at “stopping the Biden-era slush fund that fueled the homelessness crisis, shut out faith-based providers simply because of their values, and incentivized never-ending government dependency.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At issue are \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletter/trump-homeless-funds-cuts/\">changes\u003c/a> the Trump administration made to its funding policy last month. Jurisdictions applying for a piece of about $4 billion in federal homelessness funds now can’t spend more than 30% of that money on permanent housing — a significant decrease. Los Angeles County, for example, currently spends more than 80% on permanent housing. Instead, the federal government wants localities to prioritize emergency shelter and temporary housing programs that require participants to be sober or participate in treatment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While shelters offer a temporary respite from the streets, permanent housing can end someone’s homelessness. For years, the federal government has prioritized funding permanent housing using the “housing first” method — a strategy that moves people into housing as quickly as possible, without requiring them to first get sober or agree to addiction treatment. Veering away from both of those principles marks a major policy shift.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Last year, California communities won more than $683 million in federal homelessness funds through what is called the Continuum of Care program. About 90% of that went to permanent housing projects, which currently house tens of thousands of Californians, according to Newsom. The new rule threatens to put those people back out onto the street, he said in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/11/25/governor-newsom-sues-trump-administration-for-cruel-cuts-to-homeless-housing-funding-that-will-hurt-families/\">news release\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new policy also prohibits the use of federal funds for diversity and inclusion efforts, support of transgender clients, and use of “harm reduction” strategies that seek to reduce overdose deaths by helping people in active addiction use drugs more safely. And it gives preference for projects in cities, counties and states that ban homeless encampments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both lawsuits allege that the Trump administration’s funding changes violate the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution by defying the rules Congress set out for distributing the funds. Congress authorized a two-year grant cycle in 2024, meaning local jurisdictions wouldn’t have to reapply for funds in 2025. The Trump administration flouted that decision when it suddenly forced jurisdictions to reapply, the lawsuits allege.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuits also claim the administration didn’t go through proper protocol before enacting the changes to its funding strategy, which would have included giving cities and counties more time to comply with the new rules, and allowing stakeholders to comment on the changes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Santa Cruz County, Ratner is of two minds about the lawsuits. On one hand, he believes the abrupt way the Trump administration rolled out the funding changes was “very inappropriate.” But he worries a lengthy court battle could tie up funds his county needs to pay people’s rents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The National Alliance to End Homelessness \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2025/09/ca-homelessness-funding-population/\">sued the Trump administration\u003c/a> over similar allegations tied to a smaller, $75 million pot of homelessness funding in September. A judge \u003ca href=\"https://endhomelessness.org/media/court-blocks-trump-vance-administrations-unlawful-housing-grant-restrictions/\">sided with the Alliance\u003c/a>, and temporarily barred the federal government from distributing those funds. But now that money is frozen, unable to help unhoused residents as the case moves forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“While we’re waiting for these issues to get resolved, we have programs that are going to run out of money to support people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ccite>Robert Ratner, director, Housing for Health\u003c/cite>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Ratner worries that could happen again in this case. Santa Cruz County is set to start hitting serious financial problems as soon as February, Ratner said. That’s when a $1.2 million supportive housing grant, which currently houses about 50 people in different apartments around the county, is set to expire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Trump administration doesn’t expect to start awarding Continuum of Care money until May. It’s unclear how the lawsuits will affect that timeline.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, Ratner and other homeless service providers are trying to remain optimistic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At this point, we don’t know how long the litigation process will take, but we’re hopeful it leads to a more workable path forward,” Sacramento Steps Forward CEO Lisa Bates said in a statement. “Of course, any delay in federal funding would have real impacts on communities across the country, including ours, to operate shelters, rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing, and essential system coordination.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2025/12/homelessness-funding-lawsuits/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The chain of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065126/he-built-a-nursing-home-empire-despite-state-investigations-now-lawsuits-are-piling-up\">California nursing homes owned by Shlomo Rechnitz\u003c/a> and his companies has faced state scrutiny for years. Now, a series of recent lawsuits is bringing renewed attention to his companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Elder care advocates say Rechnitz’ companies are Exhibit A in how regulators at the Department of Public Health are failing some of California’s most vulnerable citizens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2021, a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-oversight-nursing-homes/\">CalMatters investigation\u003c/a> documented that the state Department of Public Health allowed Rechnitz and his companies to operate 18 nursing homes while delaying a decision on granting licenses to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state had kept the license applications in a “pending” status for seven years after he acquired them. Rechnitz and his companies were allowed to continue operating five additional homes even after the state denied licenses to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065130\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065130\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01.jpeg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01-160x107.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Los Angeles entrepreneur Shlomo Rechnitz owns one of California’s largest nursing home chains. Several of the nursing homes are in court over patient allegations of neglect and negligence. \u003ccite>(Illustration by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters. Source image: Sacramento Bee photo by Paul Kitagaki)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2022/09/nursing-home-licensing-bill/\">signed a law\u003c/a> meant to address the issue, but state regulators in 2023 granted Rechnitz’ companies the licenses to operate the homes just before the measure took effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here are key takeaways from CalMatters’ most recent coverage:\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Newly licensed homes now subjects of patient lawsuits\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Several homes that received licenses in 2023 are now being sued by patients and their family members.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In February 2024, a Los Angeles County jury \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26277158-jury-verdict/\">awarded $2.34 million\u003c/a> to an 84-year-old nursing home resident named Betsy Jentz, finding that Country Villa Wilshire had violated her rights on 132 occasions, at times leading to serious injuries.[aside postID=news_12064768 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/008_KQED_LagunaHondaHospital_01312023_qed.jpg']This coming February, a jury in Shasta County is scheduled to hear a case against Windsor Redding, which is \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21069802-complaint-2/\">accused of negligence\u003c/a> in the 2020 COVID-19 deaths of 24 patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another upcoming case involves 78-year-old Barbara Pendley, who allegedly died after \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276972-pendley-complaint-fac-8-4-23/\">suffering severe dehydration\u003c/a> at \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284983-northpoint-answer/\">North Point Healthcare & Wellness Centre\u003c/a> in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And trial is scheduled to begin next spring in the case of a 79-year-old dementia patient, referred to as \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284981-answer-to-cheryl-doe/\">Cheryl Doe\u003c/a>, who was \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276978-doe-complaint-2-2-24/\">allegedly raped twice \u003c/a>at Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland; a second case against the same facility alleges that \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276976-williams-complaint-6-26-24/\">excessive sedation\u003c/a> of 64-year-old \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284980-williams-defendants-answer-to-plaintiffs-complaint1455624141/\">Alando Williams\u003c/a> led to his death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz and his companies have denied allegations in all of these cases.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is accurate that nursing homes are the target of abusive lawsuits that accomplish nothing but depleting resources for patient care,” said Mark Johnson, an attorney for the facilities and their holding company, Brius.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On average, more citations at Rechnitz homes\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A CalMatters analysis of data from both the \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHCQ/LCP/CalHealthFind/Pages/Home.aspx\">state health department\u003c/a> and the \u003ca href=\"https://data.cms.gov/provider-data/dataset/4pq5-n9py\">federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services\u003c/a> found 78 California facilities in which Shlomo Rechnitz or his wife, Tamar, were listed among the owners. On average the facilities fared poorly on several key quality metrics compared to the state overall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>In the past three years, these 78 nursing homes received an average of 12.4 citations for facility-reported incidents, compared with 6.1 for all nursing homes statewide.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A higher proportion of the facilities has received a federal fine in the last three years than the state’s overall rate. Two-thirds of these facilities received at least one federal fine in the last three years, compared to half of all facilities across the state.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The facilities have been fined an average of $47,897 during the last three years, compared to an average of $29,573 for all California facilities.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, said in his email that a large percentage of these facilities are located in Los Angeles County, which issues deficiencies at a higher rate than any county in California, many of which are overturned on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said that “Mr. Rechnitz’s facilities self-report at a significantly higher rate than other comparable facilities,” which, in turn, could lead them to have a higher number of deficiencies.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Rechnitz is wealthy\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In August 2024, an Alameda County jury found that Alameda Healthcare & Wellness had violated the rights of 71-year-old James Doherty, Sr. \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092434-60650058-08-18-2025-special-verdict-form-1-from-jurors-v3/\">more than 1,400 times\u003c/a>.[aside postID=news_12064693 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-01-KQED-1.jpg']That included seven instances in which staff failed to transport him, causing him to miss chemotherapy treatments, court documents said. Doherty died following the development of a large pressure sore. His family was awarded $7.6 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another key revelation from that case: Rechnitz and his wife disclosed their net worth. According to financial documents filed in court, it comes to $786 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tony Chicotel, a senior staff attorney for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said that dollar figure hasn’t been divulged publicly before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At least in some of these chains, the money that was meant to go for patient care is being stripped away and sent up top to the ownership,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Advocates say the state is not doing its job\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Elder care advocates say the state Department of Public Health could push for greater accountability, including withholding licenses from owners they deem to be bad actors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wendy York, a Sacramento attorney specializing in nursing home abuse, said that watching elderly and disabled residents repeatedly suffer the same types of injuries in these facilities “feels like a broken record. It feels like Groundhog Day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are “government agencies who are responsible for their oversight,” York said, but “at the end of the day, it feels like we’re the ones who are doing the enforcement.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Department of Public Health spokesman Mark Smith said in an emailed statement that the department “remains committed to transparency and accountability for all providers, and to the health and safety of all nursing home residents in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2025/11/nursing-home-takeaways/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "CalMatters recently reported on a cluster of lawsuits against nursing homes owned by Los Angeles entrepreneur Shlomo Rechnitz. Here are takeaways from our special report.\r\n\r\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The chain of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065126/he-built-a-nursing-home-empire-despite-state-investigations-now-lawsuits-are-piling-up\">California nursing homes owned by Shlomo Rechnitz\u003c/a> and his companies has faced state scrutiny for years. Now, a series of recent lawsuits is bringing renewed attention to his companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Elder care advocates say Rechnitz’ companies are Exhibit A in how regulators at the Department of Public Health are failing some of California’s most vulnerable citizens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2021, a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-oversight-nursing-homes/\">CalMatters investigation\u003c/a> documented that the state Department of Public Health allowed Rechnitz and his companies to operate 18 nursing homes while delaying a decision on granting licenses to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state had kept the license applications in a “pending” status for seven years after he acquired them. Rechnitz and his companies were allowed to continue operating five additional homes even after the state denied licenses to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065130\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065130\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01.jpeg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01-160x107.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/Shlomo-Rechnitz_AH_CM_01-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Los Angeles entrepreneur Shlomo Rechnitz owns one of California’s largest nursing home chains. Several of the nursing homes are in court over patient allegations of neglect and negligence. \u003ccite>(Illustration by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters. Source image: Sacramento Bee photo by Paul Kitagaki)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2022/09/nursing-home-licensing-bill/\">signed a law\u003c/a> meant to address the issue, but state regulators in 2023 granted Rechnitz’ companies the licenses to operate the homes just before the measure took effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here are key takeaways from CalMatters’ most recent coverage:\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Newly licensed homes now subjects of patient lawsuits\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Several homes that received licenses in 2023 are now being sued by patients and their family members.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In February 2024, a Los Angeles County jury \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26277158-jury-verdict/\">awarded $2.34 million\u003c/a> to an 84-year-old nursing home resident named Betsy Jentz, finding that Country Villa Wilshire had violated her rights on 132 occasions, at times leading to serious injuries.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>This coming February, a jury in Shasta County is scheduled to hear a case against Windsor Redding, which is \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21069802-complaint-2/\">accused of negligence\u003c/a> in the 2020 COVID-19 deaths of 24 patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another upcoming case involves 78-year-old Barbara Pendley, who allegedly died after \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276972-pendley-complaint-fac-8-4-23/\">suffering severe dehydration\u003c/a> at \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284983-northpoint-answer/\">North Point Healthcare & Wellness Centre\u003c/a> in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And trial is scheduled to begin next spring in the case of a 79-year-old dementia patient, referred to as \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284981-answer-to-cheryl-doe/\">Cheryl Doe\u003c/a>, who was \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276978-doe-complaint-2-2-24/\">allegedly raped twice \u003c/a>at Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland; a second case against the same facility alleges that \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276976-williams-complaint-6-26-24/\">excessive sedation\u003c/a> of 64-year-old \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284980-williams-defendants-answer-to-plaintiffs-complaint1455624141/\">Alando Williams\u003c/a> led to his death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz and his companies have denied allegations in all of these cases.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is accurate that nursing homes are the target of abusive lawsuits that accomplish nothing but depleting resources for patient care,” said Mark Johnson, an attorney for the facilities and their holding company, Brius.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On average, more citations at Rechnitz homes\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A CalMatters analysis of data from both the \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHCQ/LCP/CalHealthFind/Pages/Home.aspx\">state health department\u003c/a> and the \u003ca href=\"https://data.cms.gov/provider-data/dataset/4pq5-n9py\">federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services\u003c/a> found 78 California facilities in which Shlomo Rechnitz or his wife, Tamar, were listed among the owners. On average the facilities fared poorly on several key quality metrics compared to the state overall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>In the past three years, these 78 nursing homes received an average of 12.4 citations for facility-reported incidents, compared with 6.1 for all nursing homes statewide.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A higher proportion of the facilities has received a federal fine in the last three years than the state’s overall rate. Two-thirds of these facilities received at least one federal fine in the last three years, compared to half of all facilities across the state.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The facilities have been fined an average of $47,897 during the last three years, compared to an average of $29,573 for all California facilities.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, said in his email that a large percentage of these facilities are located in Los Angeles County, which issues deficiencies at a higher rate than any county in California, many of which are overturned on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said that “Mr. Rechnitz’s facilities self-report at a significantly higher rate than other comparable facilities,” which, in turn, could lead them to have a higher number of deficiencies.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Rechnitz is wealthy\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In August 2024, an Alameda County jury found that Alameda Healthcare & Wellness had violated the rights of 71-year-old James Doherty, Sr. \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092434-60650058-08-18-2025-special-verdict-form-1-from-jurors-v3/\">more than 1,400 times\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>That included seven instances in which staff failed to transport him, causing him to miss chemotherapy treatments, court documents said. Doherty died following the development of a large pressure sore. His family was awarded $7.6 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another key revelation from that case: Rechnitz and his wife disclosed their net worth. According to financial documents filed in court, it comes to $786 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tony Chicotel, a senior staff attorney for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said that dollar figure hasn’t been divulged publicly before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At least in some of these chains, the money that was meant to go for patient care is being stripped away and sent up top to the ownership,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Advocates say the state is not doing its job\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Elder care advocates say the state Department of Public Health could push for greater accountability, including withholding licenses from owners they deem to be bad actors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wendy York, a Sacramento attorney specializing in nursing home abuse, said that watching elderly and disabled residents repeatedly suffer the same types of injuries in these facilities “feels like a broken record. It feels like Groundhog Day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are “government agencies who are responsible for their oversight,” York said, but “at the end of the day, it feels like we’re the ones who are doing the enforcement.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Department of Public Health spokesman Mark Smith said in an emailed statement that the department “remains committed to transparency and accountability for all providers, and to the health and safety of all nursing home residents in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2025/11/nursing-home-takeaways/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "newsom-condemns-violence-of-any-kind-after-national-guard-troops-are-shot-in-d-c",
"title": "Newsom Condemns Violence ‘Of Any Kind’ After National Guard Troops Are Shot in DC",
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"headTitle": "Newsom Condemns Violence ‘Of Any Kind’ After National Guard Troops Are Shot in DC | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>California lawmakers are condemning \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101911337/mourning-charlie-kirk-trump-blames-the-left-for-political-violence\">political violence\u003c/a> after two National Guard troops were shot near the White House on Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey, both of the troops were \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/wvgovernor/status/1993782336056357214\">members of the state’s National Guard contingent\u003c/a>. He initially said both had died, but later walked back the statement to say his office was “receiving conflicting reports” about their condition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>FBI Director Kash Patel and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser said the Guard members were hospitalized in critical condition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There must be zero tolerance for violence — of any kind — against the brave men and women in uniform who selflessly serve our communities and our country,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement on social media. He called the shooting “horrific and unacceptable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The guardsmen were shot shortly after 2 p.m. Eastern time on the corner of 17th and H streets, near a Washington Metro station just two blocks northwest of the White House. \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/national-guard-shooting-dc-c5785dd8920d2d1ac7d71fab769faf5f\">According to the \u003cem>Associated Press\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, one of the officers was shot in the head.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065563\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-scaled.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065563\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-2000x1334.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-2048x1366.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Streets are blocked after reports that two National Guard soldiers were shot near the White House in Washington, Nov. 26, 2025. \u003ccite>(AP Photo/Anthony Peltier)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Jeffrey Carroll, an executive assistant D.C. police chief, said investigators had no information on a motive. He said the assailant “came around the corner” and immediately started firing at the troops, citing video reviewed by investigators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This was a targeted shooting,” Bowser said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump, who is in Florida, said the gunman was also injured. He called the perpetrator an “animal” and said they would “pay a very steep price.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Trump administration quickly ordered 500 more National Guard members to Washington following the shooting. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Trump asked him to send the extra troops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After hearing the gunfire, other troops in the area ran over and held down the shooter after he was shot, Carroll said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It appears to be a lone gunman that raised a firearm and ambushed these members of the National Guard,” Carroll said, adding that it was not clear whether one of the Guard members or a law enforcement officer shot the suspect.[aside postID=news_12065240 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/IMG_4486-1020x765.jpeg']“At this point, we have no other suspects,” Carroll said at a news conference.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At least one of the Guard members exchanged gunfire with the shooter, said another law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Social media video shared in the immediate aftermath showed first responders performing CPR on one of the troops and treating the other on a glass-covered sidewalk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our family is praying for the West Virginia Guardsmen, their loved ones and their unit, after today’s horrific shooting in D.C.,” Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/SpeakerPelosi/status/1993829984847433877?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet\">said on social media\u003c/a>. “We condemn this violent act and thank the heroic first responders for rushing to the scene.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell, who launched a 2026 gubernatorial campaign last week, also denounced the incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all emergency responders on the scene,” \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/RepSwalwell/status/1993777830044553353\">he wrote on the social media platform X\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There is no place for violence like this in America,” Sen. Alex Padilla \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/SenAlexPadilla/status/1993799236429963748\">wrote\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The shooting comes amid concerns of escalating political violence after multiple high-profile assassinations this year, and months after the \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/08/restoring-law-and-order-in-the-district-of-columbia/\">Trump administration deployed National Guard troops\u003c/a> to the D.C. area, citing high crime and calling the condition of the city “a national disgrace.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The local government of the District of Columbia has lost control of public order and safety in the city,” the White House memorandum from August said. Washington is one of nine cities where the administration has sent federal officers, ostensibly to control crime issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The deployments, which included Los Angeles, raised criticism from Democratic leaders that they would only serve to inflame tensions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In June, when Trump ordered 2,000 troops to L.A., Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/CAgovernor/status/1931504803487879617\">wrote on social media\u003c/a> that it was “the wrong mission and will erode public trust.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions,” Newsom wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Washington, Trump’s \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/trump-washington-crime-national-guard-homelessness-655bc22834223c7dc93115bbcb2b215c\">emergency order\u003c/a> in August federalized the local police force and sent in National Guard troops from eight states and the District of Columbia. The order expired a month later, but the troops remained.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly 2,200 troops are currently assigned to the joint task force operating in the city, according to the government’s latest update.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, a federal judge ordered an end to the deployment but also put her order on hold for 21 days to allow the Trump administration time to either remove the troops or appeal the decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Guard members have patrolled neighborhoods, train stations and other locations, participated in highway checkpoints and been assigned to pick up trash and to guard sports events.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The Associated Press contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"title": "Newsom Condemns Violence ‘Of Any Kind’ After National Guard Troops Are Shot in DC | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>California lawmakers are condemning \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101911337/mourning-charlie-kirk-trump-blames-the-left-for-political-violence\">political violence\u003c/a> after two National Guard troops were shot near the White House on Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey, both of the troops were \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/wvgovernor/status/1993782336056357214\">members of the state’s National Guard contingent\u003c/a>. He initially said both had died, but later walked back the statement to say his office was “receiving conflicting reports” about their condition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>FBI Director Kash Patel and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser said the Guard members were hospitalized in critical condition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There must be zero tolerance for violence — of any kind — against the brave men and women in uniform who selflessly serve our communities and our country,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement on social media. He called the shooting “horrific and unacceptable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The guardsmen were shot shortly after 2 p.m. Eastern time on the corner of 17th and H streets, near a Washington Metro station just two blocks northwest of the White House. \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/national-guard-shooting-dc-c5785dd8920d2d1ac7d71fab769faf5f\">According to the \u003cem>Associated Press\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, one of the officers was shot in the head.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065563\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-scaled.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065563\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-2000x1334.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/AP25330788632315-2048x1366.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Streets are blocked after reports that two National Guard soldiers were shot near the White House in Washington, Nov. 26, 2025. \u003ccite>(AP Photo/Anthony Peltier)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Jeffrey Carroll, an executive assistant D.C. police chief, said investigators had no information on a motive. He said the assailant “came around the corner” and immediately started firing at the troops, citing video reviewed by investigators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This was a targeted shooting,” Bowser said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump, who is in Florida, said the gunman was also injured. He called the perpetrator an “animal” and said they would “pay a very steep price.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Trump administration quickly ordered 500 more National Guard members to Washington following the shooting. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Trump asked him to send the extra troops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After hearing the gunfire, other troops in the area ran over and held down the shooter after he was shot, Carroll said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It appears to be a lone gunman that raised a firearm and ambushed these members of the National Guard,” Carroll said, adding that it was not clear whether one of the Guard members or a law enforcement officer shot the suspect.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“At this point, we have no other suspects,” Carroll said at a news conference.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At least one of the Guard members exchanged gunfire with the shooter, said another law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Social media video shared in the immediate aftermath showed first responders performing CPR on one of the troops and treating the other on a glass-covered sidewalk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our family is praying for the West Virginia Guardsmen, their loved ones and their unit, after today’s horrific shooting in D.C.,” Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/SpeakerPelosi/status/1993829984847433877?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet\">said on social media\u003c/a>. “We condemn this violent act and thank the heroic first responders for rushing to the scene.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell, who launched a 2026 gubernatorial campaign last week, also denounced the incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all emergency responders on the scene,” \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/RepSwalwell/status/1993777830044553353\">he wrote on the social media platform X\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There is no place for violence like this in America,” Sen. Alex Padilla \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/SenAlexPadilla/status/1993799236429963748\">wrote\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The shooting comes amid concerns of escalating political violence after multiple high-profile assassinations this year, and months after the \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/08/restoring-law-and-order-in-the-district-of-columbia/\">Trump administration deployed National Guard troops\u003c/a> to the D.C. area, citing high crime and calling the condition of the city “a national disgrace.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The local government of the District of Columbia has lost control of public order and safety in the city,” the White House memorandum from August said. Washington is one of nine cities where the administration has sent federal officers, ostensibly to control crime issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The deployments, which included Los Angeles, raised criticism from Democratic leaders that they would only serve to inflame tensions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In June, when Trump ordered 2,000 troops to L.A., Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/CAgovernor/status/1931504803487879617\">wrote on social media\u003c/a> that it was “the wrong mission and will erode public trust.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions,” Newsom wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Washington, Trump’s \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/trump-washington-crime-national-guard-homelessness-655bc22834223c7dc93115bbcb2b215c\">emergency order\u003c/a> in August federalized the local police force and sent in National Guard troops from eight states and the District of Columbia. The order expired a month later, but the troops remained.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly 2,200 troops are currently assigned to the joint task force operating in the city, according to the government’s latest update.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, a federal judge ordered an end to the deployment but also put her order on hold for 21 days to allow the Trump administration time to either remove the troops or appeal the decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Guard members have patrolled neighborhoods, train stations and other locations, participated in highway checkpoints and been assigned to pick up trash and to guard sports events.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The Associated Press contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "he-built-a-nursing-home-empire-despite-state-investigations-now-lawsuits-are-piling-up",
"title": "He Built a Nursing Home Empire Despite State Investigations. Now, Lawsuits Are Piling Up",
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"headTitle": "He Built a Nursing Home Empire Despite State Investigations. Now, Lawsuits Are Piling Up | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In February 2024, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/los-angeles-county\">a Los Angeles County jury\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26277158-jury-verdict/\">awarded $2.34 million\u003c/a> to an 84-year-old nursing home resident named Betsy Jentz, finding that the facility had violated her rights on 132 occasions, at times leading to serious injuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Six months later, an Alameda County jury found another facility had violated the rights of 71-year-old James Doherty, Sr. \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092434-60650058-08-18-2025-special-verdict-form-1-from-jurors-v3/\">more than 1,400 times\u003c/a>. That included seven instances in which staff failed to transport him, causing him to miss chemotherapy treatments, court documents said. Doherty died following the development of a large pressure sore. His family was awarded $7.6 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In February, a jury in Shasta County is scheduled to hear a case against a nursing home \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21069802-complaint-2/\">accused of negligence\u003c/a> in the 2020 COVID-19 deaths of 24 patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And next spring, trial is scheduled to begin in the case of a 79-year-old dementia patient, referred to as \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284981-answer-to-cheryl-doe/\">Cheryl Doe\u003c/a>, who was \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276978-doe-complaint-2-2-24/\">allegedly raped twice in another Alameda County facility\u003c/a>; a second case against the same facility alleges that \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276976-williams-complaint-6-26-24/\">excessive sedation\u003c/a> of 64-year-old \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284980-williams-defendants-answer-to-plaintiffs-complaint1455624141/\">Alando Williams\u003c/a> led to his death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of these facilities have one thing in common: state records list Shlomo Rechnitz as an owner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Court documents show Rechnitz and his companies have denied all allegations in all of the cases. Mark Johnson, an attorney representing Rechnitz’ facilities and one of his main companies, Brius LLC, said in an email that facilities cannot comment on active litigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065135\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 1600px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1600\" height=\"2000\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065135\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM.jpeg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM-160x200.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM-1229x1536.jpeg 1229w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A jury in August held the nursing home Alameda Healthcare & Wellness Center responsible for the death of James Doherty, 71, an Air Force veteran. The jury awarded his family $7.6 million.\u003cbr> \u003ccite>(Photo via Lanzone Morgan, LLP)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It is accurate that nursing homes are the target of abusive lawsuits that accomplish nothing but depleting resources for patient care,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson sought to distance his clients from the cases, saying that Rechnitz and his wife, Tamar, “are passive owners of the facilities” and have “absolutely no role in operations or management.” Johnson said “the licensees” contract with a company to manage the facilities, adding that “each facility has all the necessary resources for patients and staff.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz has been on the state’s radar for years. In 2014, then-Attorney General Kamala Harris attempted to prevent him from purchasing new homes. In 2018, the State Auditor’s Office found his companies had significantly higher rates of federal deficiencies and complaints than the rest of the state’s care facilities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2021, a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-oversight-nursing-homes/\">CalMatters investigation\u003c/a> documented that the state Department of Public Health allowed Rechnitz and his companies to operate 18 nursing homes while delaying a decision on granting licenses to them. The state had kept the license applications in a “pending” status for seven years after he acquired the homes. Rechnitz and his companies were allowed to continue operating five additional homes even after the state denied licenses to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2022/09/nursing-home-licensing-bill/\">signed a law\u003c/a> meant to address the issue, but state regulators in 2023 granted Rechnitz’ companies the licenses to operate the homes just before the measure took effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now elder care advocates say he is Exhibit A in how regulators at the Department of Public Health are failing some of California’s most vulnerable citizens. They say the state could push for greater accountability, including withholding licenses from owners they deem to be bad actors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wendy York, a Sacramento attorney specializing in nursing home abuse, said that watching elderly and disabled residents repeatedly suffer the same types of injuries in these facilities “feels like a broken record. It feels like Groundhog Day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>York brought \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21069802-complaint-2/\">the lawsuit \u003c/a>in 2021 alleging that one of Rechnitz’ companies’ facilities, Windsor Redding Care Center, was responsible for \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/coronavirus/2021/10/rechnitz-nursing-home-lawsuit-covid-licensing/\">the COVID-related deaths of some 24 elderly and dependent residents\u003c/a>. Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, previously said the company “vehemently” disagrees with the allegations in the case, which is headed to trial early next year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are “government agencies who are responsible for their oversight,” York said, but “at the end of the day, it feels like we’re the ones who are doing the enforcement.”[aside postID=news_12064693 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-01-KQED-1.jpg']Johnson called it “crucial to note that California is one of the only states in the country to provide zero liability protection for healthcare providers during the unprecedented pandemic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is particularly noteworthy since nursing homes were the front line in trying to protect our frail and elderly,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At least one of the cases against Rechnitz’ facilities includes allegations about his own conduct. A man suing Rechnitz and his companies over a relative’s injuries wrote in a sworn declaration filed in court that Rechnitz attempted to \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092439-pocket-brief-re-witness-biasfiled/\">intimidate and bribe him\u003c/a> with Lakers tickets during an unexpected phone call on the eve of his scheduled testimony in Los Angeles County Superior Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney representing Rechnitz’ facilities, called allegations about threats “completely false and defamatory.” A judge ruled the conversation could not be introduced as evidence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In another case, Rechnitz and his wife Tamar in discovery disclosed their net worth: $786 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tony Chicotel, a senior staff attorney for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said that dollar figure hasn’t been divulged publicly before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At least in some of these chains, the money that was meant to go for patient care is being stripped away and sent up top to the ownership,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, did not comment on the disclosure of the family’s wealth when CalMatters asked him.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Heightened monitoring’ for two years\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Department of Public Health has for years refused CalMatters’ requests for an interview about licensing issues related to Rechnitz’ companies’ homes. They again declined requests for an interview for this story. They did not provide a reason.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, spokesman Mark Smith, said in an emailed statement that the department “remains committed to transparency and accountability for all providers, and to the health and safety of all nursing home residents in California.” In response to CalMatters’ questions about facilities in which Rechnitz is listed as an owner, Smith noted that the department had “negotiated for and obtained \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/CHOW-Settlement-Agreement-MAJ-SR-KRS-CD-signed-FINAL.pdf\">heightened monitoring authority and additional enforcement powers\u003c/a>, beyond those applicable to other skilled nursing facilities, for a period of two years at 24 of this provider’s locations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/102525_NursingHomeEmpire_FM_CM_14-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"A stone-faced building with a sign that reads “Alameda Healthcare & Wellness Center” sits behind trees and shrubs on a rainy day. Blurred plant leaves frame the foreground. A “Bike Lane Begin” sign is posted near the corner of the building.\">\u003cfigcaption>Alameda Healthcare & Wellness Center, a Shlomo Rechnitz-owned nursing home, in Alameda on Oct. 25, 2025. Photo by Florence Middleton for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That period has ended.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This does not mean our department will avoid holding this provider or their facilities accountable,” he said. “We will continue to monitor these locations as appropriate, enforce and cite for regulatory violations if needed, and take further corrective action if necessary.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://github.com/CalMatters/data-rechnitz-nursing-homes\">CalMatters analysis\u003c/a> of data from both the \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHCQ/LCP/CalHealthFind/Pages/Home.aspx\">state health department\u003c/a> and the federal \u003ca href=\"https://data.cms.gov/provider-data/dataset/4pq5-n9py\">Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services\u003c/a> found 78 California facilities in which Shlomo Rechnitz or his wife, Tamar, were listed as having an ownership stake. On average the facilities fared poorly on several key quality metrics compared to the state overall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>In the past three years, the 78 nursing homes received an average of 12.4 citations for facility-reported incidents, compared with 6.1 for all nursing homes statewide.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A higher proportion of these facilities has received a federal fine in the last three years than the state’s overall rate. Two-thirds of the facilities received at least one federal fine in the last three years, compared to half of all facilities across the state.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The facilities have been fined an average of $47,897 during the last three years, compared to an average of $29,573 for all California facilities.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The facilities had comparably low \u003ca href=\"https://www.cms.gov/medicare/health-safety-standards/certification-compliance/five-star-quality-rating-system\">federal quality ratings\u003c/a>: Almost 58% of these facilities had recent ratings of one or two stars (out of five), compared with slightly over 37% of facilities statewide.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, noted in his email that a large percentage of these facilities are located in Los Angeles County, which he said issues deficiencies at a higher rate than any county in California, many of which are overturned on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said that “Mr. Rechnitz’ facilities self-report at a significantly higher rate than other comparable facilities,” which, in turn, could lead them to have a higher number of deficiencies.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Kamala Harris’ intervention\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Back in 2014, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-oversight-nursing-homes/\">Rechnitz bid on 18 Country Villa \u003c/a>nursing homes in federal bankruptcy court. Then Attorney General Harris was so concerned with his track record that she filed an emergency motion to prevent him from purchasing or managing the homes, describing him as “\u003ca href=\"https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20447183-emergency-motion-calif-ag-8-28-14#document/p4/a2018884\">a serial violator of rules within the skilled nursing industry\u003c/a>.” At the time, Rechnitz’ attorney characterized the remarks as “\u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20447182-emergency-motion-rechnitz-response-8-29-14#document/p9/a2025411\">defamatory\u003c/a>” and “\u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20447182-emergency-motion-rechnitz-response-8-29-14#document/p2/a2018889\">outrageous\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The purchase went through.[aside postID=news_12064768 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/008_KQED_LagunaHondaHospital_01312023_qed.jpg']Rechnitz then submitted \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Pending-CHOWS-CDPH.pdf\">change-of-ownership applications\u003c/a> seeking licenses to run those homes. Rather than approving or denying them, CalMatters found that the state Department of Public Health simply left his applications in “pending” status for years. Despite that, his companies were allowed to continue operating the homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2015, he applied for \u003ca href=\"https://embed.documentcloud.org/documents/20473863-windsor-chico-creek-care-and-rehabilitation-center-llc-denied_redacted\">licenses for five Windsor \u003c/a>nursing homes. The next year, the department denied the change of ownership applications, but again allowed Rechnitz’ companies to operate them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In her scathing 2018 report, the state auditor Elaine Howle criticized the California Department of Public Health, saying weak oversight and licensing lapses increased risk to nursing home residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an effort to address these issues, the Legislature passed a law in 2022 to close a loophole that had allowed nursing home operators to run facilities without first receiving licenses. The law required the Department of Public Health to look at an applicant’s track record over several years before granting a license.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But before that law took effect the following year, the Department of Public Health suddenly \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2023/06/nursing-homes-california/\">granted Rechnitz\u003c/a> and his companies \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/CHOW-Settlement-Agreement-MAJ-SR-KRS-CD-signed-FINAL.pdf\">many of the licenses\u003c/a> it had previously left pending or outright denied. The group includes nursing homes that were the focus of recent lawsuits, such as Country Villa Wilshire, the Los Angeles-area facility where a jury awarded $2.34 million after a woman allegedly fell repeatedly due to understaffing; Windsor Redding, where the 24 patients died during a COVID outbreak; and Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland, where complaints filed in Alameda County Superior Court allege a woman was sexually assaulted twice and a man died after being given too much medication.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ed Dudensing, a Sacramento-based attorney who specializes in elder abuse in nursing homes, is bringing the case in Alameda County Superior Court alleging that neglect and poor staffing allowed a fellow patient to rape 79-year-old Cheryl Doe on multiple occasions while she stayed at \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284981-answer-to-cheryl-doe/\">Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland\u003c/a>. He is also representing the family of 64-year-old Alando Williams \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284980-williams-defendants-answer-to-plaintiffs-complaint1455624141/\">in the lawsuit \u003c/a>against the same facility alleging overmedication and wrongful death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dudensing has three other active cases against facilities affiliated with Rechnitz and his web of companies alleging neglect, abuse and wrongful death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In one of them, 78-year-old Barbara Pendley allegedly died after \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276972-pendley-complaint-fac-8-4-23/\">suffering severe dehydration\u003c/a> at \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284983-northpoint-answer/\">North Point Healthcare & Wellness Centre\u003c/a> in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>North Point was another facility that the state opted to grant Rechnitz and his companies the license for under the 2023 settlement agreement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz and his companies have filed legal responses denying allegations in all of these cases, several of which are scheduled to go to trial in the coming year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve just got to keep fighting,” Dudensing said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was a time when there was a lot of scrutiny and that’s obviously well-documented,” he said. “But he managed to slip through.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cassie Dunham, the previous deputy director of the Center for Health Care Quality for the California Department of Public Health, last year became chief executive and president of the California Association of Health Facilities, the industry’s lobbying group. Through a spokesperson, Dunham declined an interview for this story citing her involvement with the development of departmental policy during the time that the state granted Rechnitz the licenses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Corey Egel, a spokesman for the industry group and himself a former spokesman for the Department of Public Health, said in a statement that the association “supports strong, transparent oversight but believes the system would benefit from clearer timelines, more consistent application of standards, and more efficient resolution of pending cases — so that regulatory goals and resident care priorities can both be met.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Patient lawsuit at newly licensed nursing home\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Among the facilities that Rechnitz’companies received a state license to run in 2023 was Country Villa Wilshire, an 81-bed Los Angeles nursing home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276977-complaint-jentz/\">a lawsuit against the facility\u003c/a>, 84-year-old Betsy Jentz landed there in November 2020 after she fell and fractured her ribs and hip. Prior to her injuries, the complaint stated that Jentz had been in excellent health; her attorneys said she had run 27 marathons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But during the next year, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26287898-plaintiffs-trial-brief/\">a plaintiff’s brief\u003c/a>, Jentz fell at least 10 times. On some of these occasions, she hit her head, suffered a fractured and dislocated shoulder and a fractured pelvis. The complaint also described malnutrition and severe pressure ulcers. It attributed those injuries to neglect. In court filings, Rechnitz and his companies have denied all responsibility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065138\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 1334px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1334\" height=\"2000\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065138\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01.jpeg 1334w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01-160x240.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01-1025x1536.jpeg 1025w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1334px) 100vw, 1334px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Los Angeles jury in February 2024 ordered a Los Angeles nursing home to pay Betsy Jentz $2.3 million, finding the facility had violated her rights and contributed to serious injuries.\u003cbr> \u003ccite>(Photo via Lanzone Morgan, LLP)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On the evening of Jan. 28, 2024, Jentz’ great nephew Derek Skylar Aud was preparing to testify in court the next morning. Then, according to court documents, he received an unexpected phone call.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man on the other end of the line introduced himself as Shlomo Rechnitz, Aud later wrote in a declaration filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the course of more than an hour, Rechnitz allegedly told Aud that “things would get very nasty” for him and Jentz if Aud testified, the declaration said. Rechnitz allegedly said he would prolong the case for years and bring to light damaging information his private investigators had collected about Jentz.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said his private investigators had learned that Jentz loved basketball, and said she could receive courtside Lakers tickets “right next to LeBron James” if she agreed to a side deal, Aud told the court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Mr. Rechnitz then said ‘listen, I get it, we really fucked up and I’m accepting full responsibility, but I want the remedy or accountability to be on my terms and cut all these outrageous attorney’s fees out of the picture,’” Aud said in the declaration. “He also said ‘we fucked up and I accept responsibility, we were severely understaffed.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz did not directly respond to these allegations in court, and the judge ultimately did not allow the jury to consider the phone call to Aud in making its decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Attorneys from Lanzone Morgan, a Long Beach law firm that specializes in nursing home abuse, represented Jentz and Aud in their case against Country Villa Wilshire. They said that the judge accepted defense attorneys’ argument that the call constituted “confidential settlement discussions” and did not allow the jury to hear testimony about it. Gittler & Berg and Ekpebe Law Group, the law firms that represented Rechnitz and his companies in the case, did not respond to CalMatters’ requests for comment. The jury’s $2.34 million verdict is now being appealed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lanzone Morgan also brought the case against Alameda Healthcare & Wellness that ended in the $7.6 million judgment in August. The case is in a post-trial phase in which the judge is determining how to apportion the liability among defendants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rockport Healthcare Services, the administrative services company for many of the homes, is also named in some of the lawsuits, including the one against Alameda Healthcare & Wellness. Rockport is owned by Steven Stroll, who has also served as Rechnitz’ accountant. Rockport has \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26287892-ca-sup-alm-23cv051024-d42813823e717-answer-filed-by-alameda-healthcare-wellness-center/\">filed responses in court\u003c/a> denying responsibility for the allegations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Elizabeth Kim, an attorney with Lanzone Morgan, said she wants to see the Department of Public Health stop issuing licenses to Rechnitz and “other bad actors.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s shocking to me that he’s able to get licenses after he pretty much runs many of his facilities into the ground,” she said. She referred to an Aug. 22 trial in which Rechnitz acknowledged owning a private plane and having recently sold a home in Los Angeles for $23 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Her client, Aud, whose great aunt Jentz died in January 2025 a few months after the jury made its decision, wrote in\u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092439-pocket-brief-re-witness-biasfiled/\"> his declaration to the court\u003c/a>:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I continue to feel uneasy about the calls and threats and I carry the fear of retaliation with me daily…I do live in fear that Mr. Rechnitz is now even more furious and that he will make good on his threats.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>CalMatters Data Reporter Erica Yee contributed to this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>About the data\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides court records, the data on Rechnitz-owned facilities in this story is based on state and federal databases. \u003ca href=\"https://github.com/CalMatters/data-rechnitz-nursing-homes\">See full methodology and download the data\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2025/11/nursing-home-shlomo-rechnitz/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "California nursing homes affiliated with Shlomo Rechnitz are facing lawsuits alleging that patients were abused, ignored and unnecessarily exposed to COVID-19. His companies deny the allegations.\r\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In February 2024, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/los-angeles-county\">a Los Angeles County jury\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26277158-jury-verdict/\">awarded $2.34 million\u003c/a> to an 84-year-old nursing home resident named Betsy Jentz, finding that the facility had violated her rights on 132 occasions, at times leading to serious injuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Six months later, an Alameda County jury found another facility had violated the rights of 71-year-old James Doherty, Sr. \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092434-60650058-08-18-2025-special-verdict-form-1-from-jurors-v3/\">more than 1,400 times\u003c/a>. That included seven instances in which staff failed to transport him, causing him to miss chemotherapy treatments, court documents said. Doherty died following the development of a large pressure sore. His family was awarded $7.6 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In February, a jury in Shasta County is scheduled to hear a case against a nursing home \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21069802-complaint-2/\">accused of negligence\u003c/a> in the 2020 COVID-19 deaths of 24 patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And next spring, trial is scheduled to begin in the case of a 79-year-old dementia patient, referred to as \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284981-answer-to-cheryl-doe/\">Cheryl Doe\u003c/a>, who was \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276978-doe-complaint-2-2-24/\">allegedly raped twice in another Alameda County facility\u003c/a>; a second case against the same facility alleges that \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276976-williams-complaint-6-26-24/\">excessive sedation\u003c/a> of 64-year-old \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284980-williams-defendants-answer-to-plaintiffs-complaint1455624141/\">Alando Williams\u003c/a> led to his death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of these facilities have one thing in common: state records list Shlomo Rechnitz as an owner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Court documents show Rechnitz and his companies have denied all allegations in all of the cases. Mark Johnson, an attorney representing Rechnitz’ facilities and one of his main companies, Brius LLC, said in an email that facilities cannot comment on active litigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065135\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 1600px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1600\" height=\"2000\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065135\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM.jpeg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM-160x200.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-James-Doherty-CM-1229x1536.jpeg 1229w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A jury in August held the nursing home Alameda Healthcare & Wellness Center responsible for the death of James Doherty, 71, an Air Force veteran. The jury awarded his family $7.6 million.\u003cbr> \u003ccite>(Photo via Lanzone Morgan, LLP)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It is accurate that nursing homes are the target of abusive lawsuits that accomplish nothing but depleting resources for patient care,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson sought to distance his clients from the cases, saying that Rechnitz and his wife, Tamar, “are passive owners of the facilities” and have “absolutely no role in operations or management.” Johnson said “the licensees” contract with a company to manage the facilities, adding that “each facility has all the necessary resources for patients and staff.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz has been on the state’s radar for years. In 2014, then-Attorney General Kamala Harris attempted to prevent him from purchasing new homes. In 2018, the State Auditor’s Office found his companies had significantly higher rates of federal deficiencies and complaints than the rest of the state’s care facilities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2021, a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-oversight-nursing-homes/\">CalMatters investigation\u003c/a> documented that the state Department of Public Health allowed Rechnitz and his companies to operate 18 nursing homes while delaying a decision on granting licenses to them. The state had kept the license applications in a “pending” status for seven years after he acquired the homes. Rechnitz and his companies were allowed to continue operating five additional homes even after the state denied licenses to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2022/09/nursing-home-licensing-bill/\">signed a law\u003c/a> meant to address the issue, but state regulators in 2023 granted Rechnitz’ companies the licenses to operate the homes just before the measure took effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now elder care advocates say he is Exhibit A in how regulators at the Department of Public Health are failing some of California’s most vulnerable citizens. They say the state could push for greater accountability, including withholding licenses from owners they deem to be bad actors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wendy York, a Sacramento attorney specializing in nursing home abuse, said that watching elderly and disabled residents repeatedly suffer the same types of injuries in these facilities “feels like a broken record. It feels like Groundhog Day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>York brought \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21069802-complaint-2/\">the lawsuit \u003c/a>in 2021 alleging that one of Rechnitz’ companies’ facilities, Windsor Redding Care Center, was responsible for \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/coronavirus/2021/10/rechnitz-nursing-home-lawsuit-covid-licensing/\">the COVID-related deaths of some 24 elderly and dependent residents\u003c/a>. Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, previously said the company “vehemently” disagrees with the allegations in the case, which is headed to trial early next year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are “government agencies who are responsible for their oversight,” York said, but “at the end of the day, it feels like we’re the ones who are doing the enforcement.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Johnson called it “crucial to note that California is one of the only states in the country to provide zero liability protection for healthcare providers during the unprecedented pandemic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is particularly noteworthy since nursing homes were the front line in trying to protect our frail and elderly,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At least one of the cases against Rechnitz’ facilities includes allegations about his own conduct. A man suing Rechnitz and his companies over a relative’s injuries wrote in a sworn declaration filed in court that Rechnitz attempted to \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092439-pocket-brief-re-witness-biasfiled/\">intimidate and bribe him\u003c/a> with Lakers tickets during an unexpected phone call on the eve of his scheduled testimony in Los Angeles County Superior Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney representing Rechnitz’ facilities, called allegations about threats “completely false and defamatory.” A judge ruled the conversation could not be introduced as evidence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In another case, Rechnitz and his wife Tamar in discovery disclosed their net worth: $786 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tony Chicotel, a senior staff attorney for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said that dollar figure hasn’t been divulged publicly before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At least in some of these chains, the money that was meant to go for patient care is being stripped away and sent up top to the ownership,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, did not comment on the disclosure of the family’s wealth when CalMatters asked him.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Heightened monitoring’ for two years\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Department of Public Health has for years refused CalMatters’ requests for an interview about licensing issues related to Rechnitz’ companies’ homes. They again declined requests for an interview for this story. They did not provide a reason.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, spokesman Mark Smith, said in an emailed statement that the department “remains committed to transparency and accountability for all providers, and to the health and safety of all nursing home residents in California.” In response to CalMatters’ questions about facilities in which Rechnitz is listed as an owner, Smith noted that the department had “negotiated for and obtained \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/CHOW-Settlement-Agreement-MAJ-SR-KRS-CD-signed-FINAL.pdf\">heightened monitoring authority and additional enforcement powers\u003c/a>, beyond those applicable to other skilled nursing facilities, for a period of two years at 24 of this provider’s locations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/102525_NursingHomeEmpire_FM_CM_14-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"A stone-faced building with a sign that reads “Alameda Healthcare & Wellness Center” sits behind trees and shrubs on a rainy day. Blurred plant leaves frame the foreground. A “Bike Lane Begin” sign is posted near the corner of the building.\">\u003cfigcaption>Alameda Healthcare & Wellness Center, a Shlomo Rechnitz-owned nursing home, in Alameda on Oct. 25, 2025. Photo by Florence Middleton for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That period has ended.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This does not mean our department will avoid holding this provider or their facilities accountable,” he said. “We will continue to monitor these locations as appropriate, enforce and cite for regulatory violations if needed, and take further corrective action if necessary.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://github.com/CalMatters/data-rechnitz-nursing-homes\">CalMatters analysis\u003c/a> of data from both the \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHCQ/LCP/CalHealthFind/Pages/Home.aspx\">state health department\u003c/a> and the federal \u003ca href=\"https://data.cms.gov/provider-data/dataset/4pq5-n9py\">Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services\u003c/a> found 78 California facilities in which Shlomo Rechnitz or his wife, Tamar, were listed as having an ownership stake. On average the facilities fared poorly on several key quality metrics compared to the state overall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>In the past three years, the 78 nursing homes received an average of 12.4 citations for facility-reported incidents, compared with 6.1 for all nursing homes statewide.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A higher proportion of these facilities has received a federal fine in the last three years than the state’s overall rate. Two-thirds of the facilities received at least one federal fine in the last three years, compared to half of all facilities across the state.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The facilities have been fined an average of $47,897 during the last three years, compared to an average of $29,573 for all California facilities.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The facilities had comparably low \u003ca href=\"https://www.cms.gov/medicare/health-safety-standards/certification-compliance/five-star-quality-rating-system\">federal quality ratings\u003c/a>: Almost 58% of these facilities had recent ratings of one or two stars (out of five), compared with slightly over 37% of facilities statewide.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Johnson, the attorney for Rechnitz’ facilities, noted in his email that a large percentage of these facilities are located in Los Angeles County, which he said issues deficiencies at a higher rate than any county in California, many of which are overturned on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said that “Mr. Rechnitz’ facilities self-report at a significantly higher rate than other comparable facilities,” which, in turn, could lead them to have a higher number of deficiencies.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Kamala Harris’ intervention\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Back in 2014, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-oversight-nursing-homes/\">Rechnitz bid on 18 Country Villa \u003c/a>nursing homes in federal bankruptcy court. Then Attorney General Harris was so concerned with his track record that she filed an emergency motion to prevent him from purchasing or managing the homes, describing him as “\u003ca href=\"https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20447183-emergency-motion-calif-ag-8-28-14#document/p4/a2018884\">a serial violator of rules within the skilled nursing industry\u003c/a>.” At the time, Rechnitz’ attorney characterized the remarks as “\u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20447182-emergency-motion-rechnitz-response-8-29-14#document/p9/a2025411\">defamatory\u003c/a>” and “\u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20447182-emergency-motion-rechnitz-response-8-29-14#document/p2/a2018889\">outrageous\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The purchase went through.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Rechnitz then submitted \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Pending-CHOWS-CDPH.pdf\">change-of-ownership applications\u003c/a> seeking licenses to run those homes. Rather than approving or denying them, CalMatters found that the state Department of Public Health simply left his applications in “pending” status for years. Despite that, his companies were allowed to continue operating the homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2015, he applied for \u003ca href=\"https://embed.documentcloud.org/documents/20473863-windsor-chico-creek-care-and-rehabilitation-center-llc-denied_redacted\">licenses for five Windsor \u003c/a>nursing homes. The next year, the department denied the change of ownership applications, but again allowed Rechnitz’ companies to operate them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In her scathing 2018 report, the state auditor Elaine Howle criticized the California Department of Public Health, saying weak oversight and licensing lapses increased risk to nursing home residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an effort to address these issues, the Legislature passed a law in 2022 to close a loophole that had allowed nursing home operators to run facilities without first receiving licenses. The law required the Department of Public Health to look at an applicant’s track record over several years before granting a license.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But before that law took effect the following year, the Department of Public Health suddenly \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2023/06/nursing-homes-california/\">granted Rechnitz\u003c/a> and his companies \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/CHOW-Settlement-Agreement-MAJ-SR-KRS-CD-signed-FINAL.pdf\">many of the licenses\u003c/a> it had previously left pending or outright denied. The group includes nursing homes that were the focus of recent lawsuits, such as Country Villa Wilshire, the Los Angeles-area facility where a jury awarded $2.34 million after a woman allegedly fell repeatedly due to understaffing; Windsor Redding, where the 24 patients died during a COVID outbreak; and Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland, where complaints filed in Alameda County Superior Court allege a woman was sexually assaulted twice and a man died after being given too much medication.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ed Dudensing, a Sacramento-based attorney who specializes in elder abuse in nursing homes, is bringing the case in Alameda County Superior Court alleging that neglect and poor staffing allowed a fellow patient to rape 79-year-old Cheryl Doe on multiple occasions while she stayed at \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284981-answer-to-cheryl-doe/\">Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland\u003c/a>. He is also representing the family of 64-year-old Alando Williams \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284980-williams-defendants-answer-to-plaintiffs-complaint1455624141/\">in the lawsuit \u003c/a>against the same facility alleging overmedication and wrongful death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dudensing has three other active cases against facilities affiliated with Rechnitz and his web of companies alleging neglect, abuse and wrongful death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In one of them, 78-year-old Barbara Pendley allegedly died after \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276972-pendley-complaint-fac-8-4-23/\">suffering severe dehydration\u003c/a> at \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26284983-northpoint-answer/\">North Point Healthcare & Wellness Centre\u003c/a> in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>North Point was another facility that the state opted to grant Rechnitz and his companies the license for under the 2023 settlement agreement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz and his companies have filed legal responses denying allegations in all of these cases, several of which are scheduled to go to trial in the coming year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve just got to keep fighting,” Dudensing said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was a time when there was a lot of scrutiny and that’s obviously well-documented,” he said. “But he managed to slip through.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cassie Dunham, the previous deputy director of the Center for Health Care Quality for the California Department of Public Health, last year became chief executive and president of the California Association of Health Facilities, the industry’s lobbying group. Through a spokesperson, Dunham declined an interview for this story citing her involvement with the development of departmental policy during the time that the state granted Rechnitz the licenses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Corey Egel, a spokesman for the industry group and himself a former spokesman for the Department of Public Health, said in a statement that the association “supports strong, transparent oversight but believes the system would benefit from clearer timelines, more consistent application of standards, and more efficient resolution of pending cases — so that regulatory goals and resident care priorities can both be met.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Patient lawsuit at newly licensed nursing home\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Among the facilities that Rechnitz’companies received a state license to run in 2023 was Country Villa Wilshire, an 81-bed Los Angeles nursing home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26276977-complaint-jentz/\">a lawsuit against the facility\u003c/a>, 84-year-old Betsy Jentz landed there in November 2020 after she fell and fractured her ribs and hip. Prior to her injuries, the complaint stated that Jentz had been in excellent health; her attorneys said she had run 27 marathons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But during the next year, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26287898-plaintiffs-trial-brief/\">a plaintiff’s brief\u003c/a>, Jentz fell at least 10 times. On some of these occasions, she hit her head, suffered a fractured and dislocated shoulder and a fractured pelvis. The complaint also described malnutrition and severe pressure ulcers. It attributed those injuries to neglect. In court filings, Rechnitz and his companies have denied all responsibility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065138\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 1334px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1334\" height=\"2000\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065138\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01.jpeg 1334w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01-160x240.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/111725-Betsy-Jentz-CM-01-1025x1536.jpeg 1025w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1334px) 100vw, 1334px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Los Angeles jury in February 2024 ordered a Los Angeles nursing home to pay Betsy Jentz $2.3 million, finding the facility had violated her rights and contributed to serious injuries.\u003cbr> \u003ccite>(Photo via Lanzone Morgan, LLP)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On the evening of Jan. 28, 2024, Jentz’ great nephew Derek Skylar Aud was preparing to testify in court the next morning. Then, according to court documents, he received an unexpected phone call.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man on the other end of the line introduced himself as Shlomo Rechnitz, Aud later wrote in a declaration filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the course of more than an hour, Rechnitz allegedly told Aud that “things would get very nasty” for him and Jentz if Aud testified, the declaration said. Rechnitz allegedly said he would prolong the case for years and bring to light damaging information his private investigators had collected about Jentz.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said his private investigators had learned that Jentz loved basketball, and said she could receive courtside Lakers tickets “right next to LeBron James” if she agreed to a side deal, Aud told the court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Mr. Rechnitz then said ‘listen, I get it, we really fucked up and I’m accepting full responsibility, but I want the remedy or accountability to be on my terms and cut all these outrageous attorney’s fees out of the picture,’” Aud said in the declaration. “He also said ‘we fucked up and I accept responsibility, we were severely understaffed.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rechnitz did not directly respond to these allegations in court, and the judge ultimately did not allow the jury to consider the phone call to Aud in making its decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Attorneys from Lanzone Morgan, a Long Beach law firm that specializes in nursing home abuse, represented Jentz and Aud in their case against Country Villa Wilshire. They said that the judge accepted defense attorneys’ argument that the call constituted “confidential settlement discussions” and did not allow the jury to hear testimony about it. Gittler & Berg and Ekpebe Law Group, the law firms that represented Rechnitz and his companies in the case, did not respond to CalMatters’ requests for comment. The jury’s $2.34 million verdict is now being appealed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lanzone Morgan also brought the case against Alameda Healthcare & Wellness that ended in the $7.6 million judgment in August. The case is in a post-trial phase in which the judge is determining how to apportion the liability among defendants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rockport Healthcare Services, the administrative services company for many of the homes, is also named in some of the lawsuits, including the one against Alameda Healthcare & Wellness. Rockport is owned by Steven Stroll, who has also served as Rechnitz’ accountant. Rockport has \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26287892-ca-sup-alm-23cv051024-d42813823e717-answer-filed-by-alameda-healthcare-wellness-center/\">filed responses in court\u003c/a> denying responsibility for the allegations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Elizabeth Kim, an attorney with Lanzone Morgan, said she wants to see the Department of Public Health stop issuing licenses to Rechnitz and “other bad actors.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s shocking to me that he’s able to get licenses after he pretty much runs many of his facilities into the ground,” she said. She referred to an Aug. 22 trial in which Rechnitz acknowledged owning a private plane and having recently sold a home in Los Angeles for $23 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Her client, Aud, whose great aunt Jentz died in January 2025 a few months after the jury made its decision, wrote in\u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26092439-pocket-brief-re-witness-biasfiled/\"> his declaration to the court\u003c/a>:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I continue to feel uneasy about the calls and threats and I carry the fear of retaliation with me daily…I do live in fear that Mr. Rechnitz is now even more furious and that he will make good on his threats.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>CalMatters Data Reporter Erica Yee contributed to this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>About the data\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides court records, the data on Rechnitz-owned facilities in this story is based on state and federal databases. \u003ca href=\"https://github.com/CalMatters/data-rechnitz-nursing-homes\">See full methodology and download the data\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2025/11/nursing-home-shlomo-rechnitz/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell Announces Run for California Governor",
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"headTitle": "East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell Announces Run for California Governor | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>East Bay Rep. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/eric-swalwell\">Eric Swalwell\u003c/a> on Thursday became the latest Democrat to throw his hat in the ring for the 2026 governor’s race — announcing his campaign shortly before a scheduled appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our state, this great state, needs a fighter and a protector,” Swalwell told Kimmel. “Someone who will bring prices down, lift wages up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell has been a high-profile critic of President Donald Trump, taking a leading role in Trump’s second impeachment trial in 2021 and maintaining a regular presence on cable TV. The former Alameda County prosecutor has raised money and campaigned for Democrats across the country, and he could tap those relationships as he enters what promises to be an expensive campaign for the state’s top job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve been in these fights as a city councilmember up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland, and taking on the most corrupt president ever in the U.S. Congress,” Swalwell said. “But I’m ready to bring this fight home.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell lashed out at Trump for his administration’s cuts to cancer research grants, accusing him of targeting Democratic-led states such as California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a little personal to me…I lost my best friend two months ago, my mom passed and she passed from cancer,” he said. “People in California expect that you’re going to invest in cancer research, not cut it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11856940\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11856940\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">House Impeachment Manager Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-California), center, wears a protective mask while walking to the House Floor during a vote on the impeachment of President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 13, 2021, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite>(Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The race to succeed termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom remains wide open less than seven months before the June primary. Former Vice President \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12030198/prewrite-kamala-harris-enters-california-governor-race-upending-democratic-landscape\">Kamala Harris\u003c/a> and U.S. Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062840/alex-padilla-says-he-wont-run-for-california-governor-in-2026\">Alex Padilla\u003c/a> both passed on running, and the special election over \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/proposition-50\">Proposition 50\u003c/a> diverted attention and fundraising away from the campaign for governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8wp3s6qw\">poll\u003c/a> from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies this month found 44% of voters remain undecided.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell’s views on state policy are largely undefined, and he enters the race with far less experience in the state Capitol than fellow Democratic hopefuls \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12034105/xavier-becerra-enters-california-governors-race-citing-break-glass-moment\">Xavier Becerra\u003c/a>, the former attorney general, and Antonio Villaraigosa, who served as Assembly speaker before he was mayor of Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Swalwell’s clashes with Trump and Republicans in Washington could resonate with Democratic voters looking for California leaders to spearhead a resistance to the White House.[aside postID=news_12064558 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/TomSteyerGetty.jpg']When the House voted to impeach Trump in 2021 for inciting an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, Swalwell was tapped by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to help present the case to the Senate as an impeachment manager.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After Trump was acquitted, Swalwell sued him in civil court, arguing that the president fomented an attack that violated his civil rights and caused emotional distress. That lawsuit is ongoing in the U.S. District Court in Washington.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, a top housing official in the Trump administration called for a criminal probe into Swalwell, alleging the congressman may have made false or misleading statements on mortgage documents to secure better loan terms. The accusations are similar to criminal referrals made against other Trump critics, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff of California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell has denied wrongdoing and framed the move as political retaliation, telling Kimmel the charge was “nonsense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If he thinks for one second that me, Schiff … Tish James are going to hide under the bed or shrink or just go quiet, we’re not,” Swalwell said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12038122\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12038122\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/GettyImages-2208703970-scaled-e1763745715708.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-California) speaks during the Hands Off! day of action against the Trump administration and Elon Musk on April 05, 2025, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite>(Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Community Change Action)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Born in Iowa and raised in a Republican household, Swalwell has long joked that he appears on Fox News so his parents can see him. He was the first member of his family to attend college and spent years as a prosecutor in the Alameda County district attorney’s office. Two of Swalwell’s brothers served as deputies in the county sheriff’s office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell burst onto the political scene in 2012, when he defeated longtime incumbent Rep. Pete Stark. In Congress, Swalwell parlayed a savvy use of social media and regular appearances on cable news into a national following and a significant financial war chest. In 2018, he campaigned across the country for Democratic congressional candidates as the party won back control of the House.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A year later, Swalwell launched \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11715560/east-bay-democrat-eric-swalwell-joins-2020-presidential-field\">a long-shot presidential campaign\u003c/a> centered on reducing gun violence, but he failed to gain traction and ended his bid after just three months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell’s path to the governor’s office could rely on support from Bay Area voters. He and state Superintendent Tony Thurmond, a former Assembly member from Richmond, are the only candidates who have won office in the region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, Northern California has been the bedrock of high-propensity Democratic voters, although the region has supported the state’s two Los Angeles-based U.S. senators, Padilla and Schiff, in recent elections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>East Bay Rep. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/eric-swalwell\">Eric Swalwell\u003c/a> on Thursday became the latest Democrat to throw his hat in the ring for the 2026 governor’s race — announcing his campaign shortly before a scheduled appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our state, this great state, needs a fighter and a protector,” Swalwell told Kimmel. “Someone who will bring prices down, lift wages up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell has been a high-profile critic of President Donald Trump, taking a leading role in Trump’s second impeachment trial in 2021 and maintaining a regular presence on cable TV. The former Alameda County prosecutor has raised money and campaigned for Democrats across the country, and he could tap those relationships as he enters what promises to be an expensive campaign for the state’s top job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve been in these fights as a city councilmember up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland, and taking on the most corrupt president ever in the U.S. Congress,” Swalwell said. “But I’m ready to bring this fight home.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell lashed out at Trump for his administration’s cuts to cancer research grants, accusing him of targeting Democratic-led states such as California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a little personal to me…I lost my best friend two months ago, my mom passed and she passed from cancer,” he said. “People in California expect that you’re going to invest in cancer research, not cut it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11856940\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11856940\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/RS46738_GettyImages-1230571274-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">House Impeachment Manager Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-California), center, wears a protective mask while walking to the House Floor during a vote on the impeachment of President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 13, 2021, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite>(Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The race to succeed termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom remains wide open less than seven months before the June primary. Former Vice President \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12030198/prewrite-kamala-harris-enters-california-governor-race-upending-democratic-landscape\">Kamala Harris\u003c/a> and U.S. Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062840/alex-padilla-says-he-wont-run-for-california-governor-in-2026\">Alex Padilla\u003c/a> both passed on running, and the special election over \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/proposition-50\">Proposition 50\u003c/a> diverted attention and fundraising away from the campaign for governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8wp3s6qw\">poll\u003c/a> from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies this month found 44% of voters remain undecided.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell’s views on state policy are largely undefined, and he enters the race with far less experience in the state Capitol than fellow Democratic hopefuls \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12034105/xavier-becerra-enters-california-governors-race-citing-break-glass-moment\">Xavier Becerra\u003c/a>, the former attorney general, and Antonio Villaraigosa, who served as Assembly speaker before he was mayor of Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Swalwell’s clashes with Trump and Republicans in Washington could resonate with Democratic voters looking for California leaders to spearhead a resistance to the White House.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>When the House voted to impeach Trump in 2021 for inciting an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, Swalwell was tapped by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to help present the case to the Senate as an impeachment manager.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After Trump was acquitted, Swalwell sued him in civil court, arguing that the president fomented an attack that violated his civil rights and caused emotional distress. That lawsuit is ongoing in the U.S. District Court in Washington.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, a top housing official in the Trump administration called for a criminal probe into Swalwell, alleging the congressman may have made false or misleading statements on mortgage documents to secure better loan terms. The accusations are similar to criminal referrals made against other Trump critics, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff of California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell has denied wrongdoing and framed the move as political retaliation, telling Kimmel the charge was “nonsense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If he thinks for one second that me, Schiff … Tish James are going to hide under the bed or shrink or just go quiet, we’re not,” Swalwell said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12038122\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12038122\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/GettyImages-2208703970-scaled-e1763745715708.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-California) speaks during the Hands Off! day of action against the Trump administration and Elon Musk on April 05, 2025, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite>(Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Community Change Action)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Born in Iowa and raised in a Republican household, Swalwell has long joked that he appears on Fox News so his parents can see him. He was the first member of his family to attend college and spent years as a prosecutor in the Alameda County district attorney’s office. Two of Swalwell’s brothers served as deputies in the county sheriff’s office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell burst onto the political scene in 2012, when he defeated longtime incumbent Rep. Pete Stark. In Congress, Swalwell parlayed a savvy use of social media and regular appearances on cable news into a national following and a significant financial war chest. In 2018, he campaigned across the country for Democratic congressional candidates as the party won back control of the House.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A year later, Swalwell launched \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11715560/east-bay-democrat-eric-swalwell-joins-2020-presidential-field\">a long-shot presidential campaign\u003c/a> centered on reducing gun violence, but he failed to gain traction and ended his bid after just three months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Swalwell’s path to the governor’s office could rely on support from Bay Area voters. He and state Superintendent Tony Thurmond, a former Assembly member from Richmond, are the only candidates who have won office in the region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, Northern California has been the bedrock of high-propensity Democratic voters, although the region has supported the state’s two Los Angeles-based U.S. senators, Padilla and Schiff, in recent elections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "california-ag-rob-bonta-wont-rule-out-a-run-for-governor-amid-campaign-fund-questions",
"title": "California AG Rob Bonta Won’t Rule Out a Run for Governor Amid Campaign Fund Questions",
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"headTitle": "California AG Rob Bonta Won’t Rule Out a Run for Governor Amid Campaign Fund Questions | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>California Attorney General \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/rob-bonta\">Rob Bonta\u003c/a> on Thursday left the door open to a possible run for governor, weeks after previously saying he would stay out of the 2026 race.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an interview with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064988/california-attorney-general-has-filed-46-lawsuits-against-trump-administration\">KQED’s \u003cem>Political Breakdown\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, Bonta also provided new details about his spending of campaign funds on legal services as he faced questions in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12022612/ex-oakland-mayor-sheng-thao-3-others-charged-with-bribery-sprawling-corruption-probe\">the federal corruption investigation that ensnared former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao\u003c/a>. Bonta is not accused of any wrongdoing, but questions about his connection to the East Bay recycling executives \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12018120/family-center-oakland-fbi-raid-backed-thao-secure-lucrative-contracts-da-says\">at the center\u003c/a> of the scandal have swirled alongside speculation about his political future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As attorney general, Bonta has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101910625/california-attorney-general-rob-bonta-on-standing-up-to-the-trump-administration\">spearheaded California’s legal battles\u003c/a> against the Trump administration, and his position as the state’s top law enforcement official could serve as a springboard to pursue the governorship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bonta said he had initially hoped former Vice President Kamala Harris would run to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is termed out in 2027. When Harris \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12030198/prewrite-kamala-harris-enters-california-governor-race-upending-democratic-landscape\">decided against running\u003c/a>, Bonta shifted his support to Sen. Alex Padilla.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At a \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/NxpFwZ04NQ0?si=jiofeCMbp-W6Srp2&t=2945\">press conference in October\u003c/a>, Bonta said he was “staying out of the governor’s race.” Then, in early November, Padilla announced he was also \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062840/alex-padilla-says-he-wont-run-for-california-governor-in-2026\">declining to enter\u003c/a> the campaign.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Asked on Thursday whether the door to running was completely shut, Bonta responded that he is “completely focused on the work I’m doing as AG.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12043426\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12043426\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1491\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty-160x119.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty-1536x1145.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Gavin Newsom (right) speaks as Attorney General Rob Bonta looks on during a news conference on April 16, 2025, in Ceres, California. \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I will say this: I’ve been getting a very significant amount of encouragement to consider running for governor, and for that I am flattered, I’m honored, I’m grateful,” Bonta said. “It comes from a wide variety of people and entities that I very much respect and that I know care deeply about the future of California, but I am focused on being AG and I have nothing to announce today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The list of candidates \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12059479/katie-porters-viral-video-shakes-up-governors-race\">running in the June primary\u003c/a> includes Democrats such as former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, as well as Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican. But the field continues to grow — megadonor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064558/billionaire-climate-activist-tom-steyer-enters-2026-california-governors-race\">Tom Steyer jumped in\u003c/a> the race on Wednesday — and 44% of voters remain undecided, according to a Berkeley IGS poll released this month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officially, Bonta has been raising money to run for another term as attorney general. His campaign finance filings this year have raised eyebrows for the large sums he is spending on legal fees: over $468,000 to the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.[aside postID=news_12063660 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/RobBontaAP.jpg']“Over a year ago, maybe 14 months ago, the federal government reached out to me and said that they thought I may have information that would be relevant to the investigation that they were engaged in of other individuals that they were focused on,” Bonta said. “Having never done this before, I wanted to make sure I had an attorney who could guide me through the process and ensure that I provided everything that could be helpful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The federal probe resulted in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12023847/the-indictment-of-former-oakland-mayor-sheng-thao\">January indictment\u003c/a> of Thao, as well as David and Andy Duong, the father-and-son owners of the recycling company California Waste Solutions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Duongs are accused of funding campaign mailers and a no-show job for Thao’s boyfriend. In exchange, Thao is alleged to have promised an extension of Oakland’s contract with California Waste Solutions, an appointment of a city official hand-picked by the Duongs and a city purchase of housing units from another company run by the Duongs. Both Andy and David Duong, along with Thao and her romantic partner, Andre Jones, have pleaded not guilty.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Duongs were longtime political supporters of Bonta, who previously represented Oakland and Alameda in the state Assembly. After California Waste Solutions was raided in 2024, Bonta \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12025747/barbara-lee-return-5000-donations-from-family-linked-oakland-bribery-scandal\">returned\u003c/a> $155,100 in donations that he had received from the family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The East Bay political world is relatively finite and small, and so I operated in that space for a number of years and had a really broad number of supporters,” Bonta said. “The Duong family was active in East Bay politics as well, and had supported me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11991432\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11991432\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">U.S. postal inspectors check documents at a home tied to David Duong, one of the multiple properties searched by law enforcement that included residences to members of a politically connected family who run the city’s contracted recycling company, California Waste Solutions, in Oakland on June 20, 2024. \u003ccite>(Ray Chavez/MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When the news came out that there was raids on homes … and potential indictments coming down that eventually did come down, that was a shock and a surprise to me,” he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bonta said he hired lawyers to guide him through the process of fulfilling the investigators’ requests.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They helped gather all the information that the federal government was interested in and provide it,” he said. “And then I made myself available to answer any questions about any of that information, any of those documents and anything else they wanted to talk to me about.”[aside postID=news_12064908 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/20250117_Thao-Recall_BL_00001-1020x681.jpg']Bonta said that at no point was he given the sense that he was a target of the investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I got a very clear opposite sense that they are absolutely not investigating me and that I am not a target,” he added. “I am someone that they thought may have relevant information about an investigation that they were engaged in of others.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Earlier Thursday, the politics newsletter East Bay Insiders reported that Bonta received a letter in May 2024 from Mario Juarez, a former Duong business partner who is believed to have cooperated with the federal investigation, warning the attorney general that the Duong family possessed a recording of Bonta in a “compromising situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bonta confirmed to KQED that he received the letter, but said that “the reference to any video is absolutely not true. It’s false, and there is no video.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said much of the letter seemed “wild and baseless,” but he was concerned about Juarez’s claims that he felt his life was endangered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I took steps to provide that letter to local law enforcement partners to ensure that safety was enhanced and people were protected,” Bonta said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Bonta told KQED he paid lawyers nearly $500,000 to gather information related to the federal investigation that ensnared former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>California Attorney General \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/rob-bonta\">Rob Bonta\u003c/a> on Thursday left the door open to a possible run for governor, weeks after previously saying he would stay out of the 2026 race.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an interview with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064988/california-attorney-general-has-filed-46-lawsuits-against-trump-administration\">KQED’s \u003cem>Political Breakdown\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, Bonta also provided new details about his spending of campaign funds on legal services as he faced questions in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12022612/ex-oakland-mayor-sheng-thao-3-others-charged-with-bribery-sprawling-corruption-probe\">the federal corruption investigation that ensnared former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao\u003c/a>. Bonta is not accused of any wrongdoing, but questions about his connection to the East Bay recycling executives \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12018120/family-center-oakland-fbi-raid-backed-thao-secure-lucrative-contracts-da-says\">at the center\u003c/a> of the scandal have swirled alongside speculation about his political future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As attorney general, Bonta has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101910625/california-attorney-general-rob-bonta-on-standing-up-to-the-trump-administration\">spearheaded California’s legal battles\u003c/a> against the Trump administration, and his position as the state’s top law enforcement official could serve as a springboard to pursue the governorship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bonta said he had initially hoped former Vice President Kamala Harris would run to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is termed out in 2027. When Harris \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12030198/prewrite-kamala-harris-enters-california-governor-race-upending-democratic-landscape\">decided against running\u003c/a>, Bonta shifted his support to Sen. Alex Padilla.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At a \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/NxpFwZ04NQ0?si=jiofeCMbp-W6Srp2&t=2945\">press conference in October\u003c/a>, Bonta said he was “staying out of the governor’s race.” Then, in early November, Padilla announced he was also \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062840/alex-padilla-says-he-wont-run-for-california-governor-in-2026\">declining to enter\u003c/a> the campaign.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Asked on Thursday whether the door to running was completely shut, Bonta responded that he is “completely focused on the work I’m doing as AG.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12043426\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12043426\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1491\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty-160x119.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GavinNewsomRobBontaGetty-1536x1145.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Gavin Newsom (right) speaks as Attorney General Rob Bonta looks on during a news conference on April 16, 2025, in Ceres, California. \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I will say this: I’ve been getting a very significant amount of encouragement to consider running for governor, and for that I am flattered, I’m honored, I’m grateful,” Bonta said. “It comes from a wide variety of people and entities that I very much respect and that I know care deeply about the future of California, but I am focused on being AG and I have nothing to announce today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The list of candidates \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12059479/katie-porters-viral-video-shakes-up-governors-race\">running in the June primary\u003c/a> includes Democrats such as former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, as well as Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican. But the field continues to grow — megadonor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064558/billionaire-climate-activist-tom-steyer-enters-2026-california-governors-race\">Tom Steyer jumped in\u003c/a> the race on Wednesday — and 44% of voters remain undecided, according to a Berkeley IGS poll released this month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officially, Bonta has been raising money to run for another term as attorney general. His campaign finance filings this year have raised eyebrows for the large sums he is spending on legal fees: over $468,000 to the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Over a year ago, maybe 14 months ago, the federal government reached out to me and said that they thought I may have information that would be relevant to the investigation that they were engaged in of other individuals that they were focused on,” Bonta said. “Having never done this before, I wanted to make sure I had an attorney who could guide me through the process and ensure that I provided everything that could be helpful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The federal probe resulted in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12023847/the-indictment-of-former-oakland-mayor-sheng-thao\">January indictment\u003c/a> of Thao, as well as David and Andy Duong, the father-and-son owners of the recycling company California Waste Solutions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Duongs are accused of funding campaign mailers and a no-show job for Thao’s boyfriend. In exchange, Thao is alleged to have promised an extension of Oakland’s contract with California Waste Solutions, an appointment of a city official hand-picked by the Duongs and a city purchase of housing units from another company run by the Duongs. Both Andy and David Duong, along with Thao and her romantic partner, Andre Jones, have pleaded not guilty.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Duongs were longtime political supporters of Bonta, who previously represented Oakland and Alameda in the state Assembly. After California Waste Solutions was raided in 2024, Bonta \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12025747/barbara-lee-return-5000-donations-from-family-linked-oakland-bribery-scandal\">returned\u003c/a> $155,100 in donations that he had received from the family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The East Bay political world is relatively finite and small, and so I operated in that space for a number of years and had a really broad number of supporters,” Bonta said. “The Duong family was active in East Bay politics as well, and had supported me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11991432\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11991432\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/GETTYIMAGES-2158502017-KQED-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">U.S. postal inspectors check documents at a home tied to David Duong, one of the multiple properties searched by law enforcement that included residences to members of a politically connected family who run the city’s contracted recycling company, California Waste Solutions, in Oakland on June 20, 2024. \u003ccite>(Ray Chavez/MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When the news came out that there was raids on homes … and potential indictments coming down that eventually did come down, that was a shock and a surprise to me,” he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bonta said he hired lawyers to guide him through the process of fulfilling the investigators’ requests.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They helped gather all the information that the federal government was interested in and provide it,” he said. “And then I made myself available to answer any questions about any of that information, any of those documents and anything else they wanted to talk to me about.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Bonta said that at no point was he given the sense that he was a target of the investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I got a very clear opposite sense that they are absolutely not investigating me and that I am not a target,” he added. “I am someone that they thought may have relevant information about an investigation that they were engaged in of others.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Earlier Thursday, the politics newsletter East Bay Insiders reported that Bonta received a letter in May 2024 from Mario Juarez, a former Duong business partner who is believed to have cooperated with the federal investigation, warning the attorney general that the Duong family possessed a recording of Bonta in a “compromising situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bonta confirmed to KQED that he received the letter, but said that “the reference to any video is absolutely not true. It’s false, and there is no video.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said much of the letter seemed “wild and baseless,” but he was concerned about Juarez’s claims that he felt his life was endangered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I took steps to provide that letter to local law enforcement partners to ensure that safety was enhanced and people were protected,” Bonta said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "SNAP Benefits Hung in Limbo for Weeks. It Was a Peek at Life Under Long-Term Cuts",
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"content": "\u003cp>She’d been waiting for over an hour, and Trozalla Smith was still nowhere near the front of the line.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Outside the East Oakland Collective’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12061440/calfresh-snap-ebt-shutdown-find-food-banks-near-me-san-francisco-bay-area-alameda-oakland-contra-costa-newsom-national-guard\">food pantry,\u003c/a> the mass of people stretched half a block in either direction around her. Women with babies strapped to their backs shifted their weight from one foot to another, bored kids sat on the sidewalk, and elderly men stood stiffly in place as they waited to pick up whatever was left of that week’s offerings — fresh produce, instant ramen, milk and, if they were lucky, eggs and meat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was the end of October, and food pantries were absorbing the shock of around 5.5 million Californians anticipating \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12060770/snap-calfresh-food-stamps-government-shutdown-november-payments-ebt\">delays to their federal food benefits\u003c/a> amid the government shutdown. Unsure of the status of her aid, Smith, 24, was relying entirely on pantries to feed herself and her boyfriend. “It’s our lifeline,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The uncertainty was only the latest reminder of how precarious life on the economic margins already is. The struggle to afford one of the country’s most expensive regions, with grocery prices still soaring, started long before the shutdown and will continue long after it finally ended on Nov. 12.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For two weeks, the country’s largest anti-hunger program hung in the balance — and it may have been only a glimpse of what’s to come.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Smith and thousands more across the Bay Area scrambled to get by during the shutdown, state leaders were wrestling with a more enduring threat to food aid: policy changes recently signed into law by President Trump that \u003ca href=\"https://calbudgetcenter.org/resources/federal-funding-cuts-to-snap-calfresh-will-have-sweeping-impacts-on-californians/?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">are expected to reduce\u003c/a> benefits for over 3 million California households.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064444\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064444\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith arrives at the Alameda Food Bank on Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>New eligibility limits and benefit reductions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/5090\">mean some 400,000 to 750,000 Californians\u003c/a> could lose access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program altogether, according to estimates by the state Legislative Analyst’s Office and policy experts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And all the recent attention on SNAP has \u003ca href=\"https://newrepublic.com/article/203120/trump-snap-food-stamps\">placed the program\u003c/a> in the Trump administration’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/14/trump-usda-snap-participants-reapply-benefits-00651874\">crosshairs\u003c/a>, leading many to brace for still more blows to food aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are unprecedented changes to the program that will have impacts for many years,” David Swanson Hollinger, chief deputy director at the California Department of Social Services, \u003ca href=\"https://www.senate.ca.gov/media-archive?time%5bmedia-element-18223%5d=2999.428751\">told a state Senate committee\u003c/a> last week, warning that lawmakers will have to “reimagine our path forward.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Everything is so expensive’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Some of the newly enacted changes haven’t yet rolled out in California, and others are just beginning to take effect, but staff at the East Oakland Collective said they’d heard from several clients who unexpectedly had their benefits cut in October.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Among them was Monica Thompson, a 64-year-old who has breast cancer and was one of the first to get in line that morning. Her assistance was cut from about $300 down to $24, she said, screwing up her face. “What can I do with $24?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the last week of October, the collective had already served 100 more families than usual, according to executive director Candice Elder.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064446\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064446\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shopping carts are parked around the Alameda Food Bank on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Standing in line that morning, a pregnant woman with a toddler in a stroller checked the state benefits app on her phone for updates. “November benefits will likely be delayed,” Taylor Ducote read, scrolling through the FAQs with exasperation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fear that we have to live with every day until we find out if we’re going to get it or not … it’s just really nerve-wracking and scary for our kids,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ducote had just gotten housing four months earlier after half a decade of homelessness, and she wondered aloud how she’d pay her rent and utilities if she had to buy food out of pocket. Already, she was desperate by the end of the month.[aside postID=news_12061440 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/013_KQED_SanFranciscoMarinFoodBank_03182020_9229_qed.jpg']The night before, she said, she got caught stealing from a grocery store. She didn’t get arrested, but she was humiliated. “You think I want to be right here stealing so my son can get milk?” she had told the security guard. “Look what I’m stealing: toilet paper, diapers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few miles away, Ana Hoover, 54, stood in line at the Berkeley Food Pantry. She said she’d been out of work since December and was relying on food stamps, pantries and occasional gigs she found through an event staffing company or on NextDoor to make ends meet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Every month, she used up her SNAP benefits at least two weeks before they were replenished.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like Ducote, the prospect of losing them altogether left her unsure about how she’d stay housed and take care of other basic needs. She’d been homeless for three years until recently, and she now pays $1,050 a month for a room at the YMCA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everything is so expensive,” she said. “Food stamps doesn’t cover toothpaste, toothbrushes … [and] now the money is also going for food.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064885\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064885\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith shops at the Alameda Food Bank on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The added stress of losing her $300 in food aid rippled across her life in ways big and small. It put more obstacles on her path back to the workforce. How would she pay for transportation to jobs? She rationed the mascara, lipstick and deodorant that gave her the confidence to go to interviews.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She had a gig coming up as an usher for an event at the Moscone Center, and she needed an all-black outfit. “I went into a panic because I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, I need to buy black shoes.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She aims to apply for three jobs a day. “I need to be focusing,” she said. “When you’re almost in a panic, how can you focus and how can you be productive?”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The power of choice\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The next week, Smith pushed a shopping cart through the Alameda Food Bank. She had applied for CalFresh, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063660/california-moves-to-protect-calfresh-payments-from-federal-confusion-and-chaos\">California’s version of SNAP\u003c/a>, in early October, after she lost her job as a home health aide, and she received emergency benefits for the month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While she waited on approval, she created a daily schedule of food pantries and bused from one to another, patching together meals from the hodgepodge of dry goods and produce available and figuring out which were worth her time. This bank, with its brand new building and heaping bins of apples and potatoes, was one of the best she’d found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064445\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064445\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith shops at the Alameda Food Bank on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Today, she was most excited about the fresh strawberries — usually too expensive to buy, and often starting to mold by the time she found them at food pantries. Those pantries rely heavily on the Alameda County Community Food Bank, which fills their shelves with a mix of food from federal programs, donations, bulk farm purchases and surplus groceries that are sometimes on the verge of expiring.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You have to eat it that day or the next, which makes it hard,” Smith said. These berries, though, looked perfectly fresh.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Each bin listed an item limit on the side, so Smith had learned to shop carefully. “You can get four apples,” she said, hunting through the bin for the largest she could find. “You’ll get fuller with a bigger apple, but they tend to be more bruised. It’s a bit like a scavenger hunt.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That the new, sprawling food bank was designed to mimic the experience of shopping wasn’t lost on Smith. “I like this place because it makes you feel more like a regular person,” she said. “You get to shop for your food.”[aside postID=news_12063723 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251110-COLLEGE-STUDENTS-CALFRESH-MD-01-KQED.jpg']She was grateful for the semblance of choice, but what the SNAP program provided was the real thing — something people pointed out again and again as they faced the prospect of going without their benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I get to cook. I refuse to go to them fast-food places,” said Anthony Cassidy, standing outside the food bank with a basket full of fruits and vegetables. “I like making stew.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 75-year-old Vietnam War veteran said he spent decades addicted to heroin, in and out of prison and homelessness, and was now sober and stably housed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m bound and determined to live out my days healthy and free,” he said. “SNAP has really helped me, allowed me to get some food that I like instead of stuff that I had to get.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a single week, Smith spent some 20 hours busing to and from six pantries, waiting in line and picking up food.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My body’s tired today, really tired,” she said, the day after her trip to the Alameda Food Bank. She was back in East Oakland, making her way to the bus stop after visiting two food pantries on MacArthur Boulevard. She struggled under the weight of three heavy tote bags loaded with watermelon, butternut squash, potatoes and pears. In her free hand, she balanced a pizza, an unexpected pantry score.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s definitely going to hurt later on tonight,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064448\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064448\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith stands across advertisements for CalFresh as she holds her groceries from the Alameda Food Bank at the 12th Street BART Station in Oakland on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Smith has lupus, an autoimmune condition that makes her joints ache and some days, leaves her too exhausted to get out of bed. She was diagnosed at 8 years old, she said, after a series of mysterious rashes, fevers and aches had perplexed doctors for nearly two years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2023, the illness forced her to come home from college at Emory University in Atlanta. She developed pericarditis, a swelling of the tissue surrounding her heart, and doctors recommended she take a break.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was on a lot of steroids, couldn’t walk at that point,” she said. Still, she was devastated to leave the school, where she was on a pre-med track. “I loved it so much,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back home after a 30-minute bus ride and 10-minute walk, Smith and her boyfriend, 24-year-old Kelinde Secrease, hoisted the groceries onto the counter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She pulled eggs from a tote triumphantly. The pantries often ran out, and she’d gotten in line an hour and a half before the East Oakland Collective opened in order to bring these home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064450\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064450\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith puts away groceries from the Alameda food bank in her fridge at her family home in San Leandro on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>A few days earlier, Secrease had caught himself doing something he hadn’t done in a long time: wondering what he wanted to eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I had a realization where I was like, wow — even being able to say ‘What do I want to eat?’ is a very powerful statement that I’m very grateful for,” he said. Before they’d learned to navigate the patchwork of pantries in the area, with Smith out of work and his own hours stuck at just 12 a week, food had been so limited that eating stopped feeling like a choice at all.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Having choices allowed him to enjoy food again. “It doesn’t feel so laborious having to eat because you’re eating something that you really don’t want to,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For people like Smith and Secrease, going without federal food aid doesn’t necessarily mean going hungry. But it pushes their already precarious budget to the breaking point, forcing them to scramble for rent and utilities, bus fare, tampons and toothpaste. Necessity strips away choice, and with it, the small freedoms that make life feel like more than survival. “When you have options, you have freedom,” Secrease said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the moment, the couple figured they had enough food to last them a week. Smith was relieved she’d have that time to focus on applying for jobs and tending to her health. But first they had to chop, freeze, roast and juice their way through the small mountain of produce to keep it from going to waste. After six hours in the kitchen, they had a freezer and refrigerator full of food.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Some relief, but uncertainty remains\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A week into November, Hoover stood in the YMCA residence’s shared kitchen, chopping onion, potato and bell pepper to add to a roasting pan where a whole chicken sizzled in the oven.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I love to cook, it’s one of my favorite things to do,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She’d gotten the bird for under $10 at Trader Joe’s; the rest of the meal came from the Berkeley Food Pantry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064440\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ana Hoover checks out her groceries at her local Trader Joe’s in Berkeley on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With the month’s food stamps still in limbo amid federal court challenges and the ongoing government shutdown, she called the state’s EBT helpline, hoping for answers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Your CalFresh balance is $0.61,” a recorded voice said. “You have one future benefit added to the account. CalFresh benefits available on Nov. 10 for $298.00.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Oh, my God, what a lifesaver!” Hoover said. “Oh, my God.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She covered her face with her hands and burst into tears. “The stress level — feeling like, how am I going to do this,” she said. “You have no idea what relief.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064441\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064441\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ana Hoover, whose SNAP benefits were delayed by the government shutdown, uses her EBT card to pay for her groceries at her local Trader Joe’s in Berkeley on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Earlier that week, Smith had come home from a three-hour food pantry trip to a letter from the county. Her CalFresh benefits were being denied, the letter explained, because she had not submitted proof of income. She was deflated and frustrated. “I don’t understand. I don’t have any income,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By mid-November, Smith had landed a part-time nanny position, Secrease was working full-time, midnight to 7 a.m., training robots to fold clothes and bus tables, and Hoover was still picking up gigs while applying for jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Smith was again waiting to hear back about her CalFresh case after submitting new income documents, and Hoover had $58 left in her account — just enough to make a Thanksgiving meal with the free turkey she’d learned a local pantry was offering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064439\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064439\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ana Hoover shops at her local Trader Joe’s in Berkeley on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For both women, the last month had deepened their distrust of a system meant to catch them when they fell. “I have always felt that these types of benefits could end anytime,” Hoover said, but that fear no longer feels hypothetical.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Republicans have long sought to cut federal funding for food benefits, implement stricter work requirements and shift the burden to states. After Trump signed some of those restrictions into law this year, the shutdown showed what could follow if federal benefits are further curtailed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Smith took some comfort in knowing she found a way forward through sheer tenacity, but the effort had caused her lupus to flare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As she lay in bed, she hoped the food in the freezer would last long enough for her to recover. Then she’d pull up her pantry schedule, pack her tote bags and do it all over again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The shutdown is over, but the panic over delayed benefits is only the latest reminder of how precarious life is on the economic margins — and what could come under cuts by the Trump administration.",
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"title": "SNAP Benefits Hung in Limbo for Weeks. It Was a Peek at Life Under Long-Term Cuts | KQED",
"description": "The shutdown is over, but the panic over delayed benefits is only the latest reminder of how precarious life is on the economic margins — and what could come under cuts by the Trump administration.",
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"headline": "SNAP Benefits Hung in Limbo for Weeks. It Was a Peek at Life Under Long-Term Cuts",
"datePublished": "2025-11-20T09:54:12-08:00",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>She’d been waiting for over an hour, and Trozalla Smith was still nowhere near the front of the line.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Outside the East Oakland Collective’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12061440/calfresh-snap-ebt-shutdown-find-food-banks-near-me-san-francisco-bay-area-alameda-oakland-contra-costa-newsom-national-guard\">food pantry,\u003c/a> the mass of people stretched half a block in either direction around her. Women with babies strapped to their backs shifted their weight from one foot to another, bored kids sat on the sidewalk, and elderly men stood stiffly in place as they waited to pick up whatever was left of that week’s offerings — fresh produce, instant ramen, milk and, if they were lucky, eggs and meat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was the end of October, and food pantries were absorbing the shock of around 5.5 million Californians anticipating \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12060770/snap-calfresh-food-stamps-government-shutdown-november-payments-ebt\">delays to their federal food benefits\u003c/a> amid the government shutdown. Unsure of the status of her aid, Smith, 24, was relying entirely on pantries to feed herself and her boyfriend. “It’s our lifeline,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The uncertainty was only the latest reminder of how precarious life on the economic margins already is. The struggle to afford one of the country’s most expensive regions, with grocery prices still soaring, started long before the shutdown and will continue long after it finally ended on Nov. 12.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For two weeks, the country’s largest anti-hunger program hung in the balance — and it may have been only a glimpse of what’s to come.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Smith and thousands more across the Bay Area scrambled to get by during the shutdown, state leaders were wrestling with a more enduring threat to food aid: policy changes recently signed into law by President Trump that \u003ca href=\"https://calbudgetcenter.org/resources/federal-funding-cuts-to-snap-calfresh-will-have-sweeping-impacts-on-californians/?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">are expected to reduce\u003c/a> benefits for over 3 million California households.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064444\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064444\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00687_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith arrives at the Alameda Food Bank on Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>New eligibility limits and benefit reductions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/5090\">mean some 400,000 to 750,000 Californians\u003c/a> could lose access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program altogether, according to estimates by the state Legislative Analyst’s Office and policy experts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And all the recent attention on SNAP has \u003ca href=\"https://newrepublic.com/article/203120/trump-snap-food-stamps\">placed the program\u003c/a> in the Trump administration’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/14/trump-usda-snap-participants-reapply-benefits-00651874\">crosshairs\u003c/a>, leading many to brace for still more blows to food aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are unprecedented changes to the program that will have impacts for many years,” David Swanson Hollinger, chief deputy director at the California Department of Social Services, \u003ca href=\"https://www.senate.ca.gov/media-archive?time%5bmedia-element-18223%5d=2999.428751\">told a state Senate committee\u003c/a> last week, warning that lawmakers will have to “reimagine our path forward.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Everything is so expensive’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Some of the newly enacted changes haven’t yet rolled out in California, and others are just beginning to take effect, but staff at the East Oakland Collective said they’d heard from several clients who unexpectedly had their benefits cut in October.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Among them was Monica Thompson, a 64-year-old who has breast cancer and was one of the first to get in line that morning. Her assistance was cut from about $300 down to $24, she said, screwing up her face. “What can I do with $24?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the last week of October, the collective had already served 100 more families than usual, according to executive director Candice Elder.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064446\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064446\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00936_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shopping carts are parked around the Alameda Food Bank on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Standing in line that morning, a pregnant woman with a toddler in a stroller checked the state benefits app on her phone for updates. “November benefits will likely be delayed,” Taylor Ducote read, scrolling through the FAQs with exasperation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fear that we have to live with every day until we find out if we’re going to get it or not … it’s just really nerve-wracking and scary for our kids,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ducote had just gotten housing four months earlier after half a decade of homelessness, and she wondered aloud how she’d pay her rent and utilities if she had to buy food out of pocket. Already, she was desperate by the end of the month.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The night before, she said, she got caught stealing from a grocery store. She didn’t get arrested, but she was humiliated. “You think I want to be right here stealing so my son can get milk?” she had told the security guard. “Look what I’m stealing: toilet paper, diapers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few miles away, Ana Hoover, 54, stood in line at the Berkeley Food Pantry. She said she’d been out of work since December and was relying on food stamps, pantries and occasional gigs she found through an event staffing company or on NextDoor to make ends meet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Every month, she used up her SNAP benefits at least two weeks before they were replenished.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like Ducote, the prospect of losing them altogether left her unsure about how she’d stay housed and take care of other basic needs. She’d been homeless for three years until recently, and she now pays $1,050 a month for a room at the YMCA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everything is so expensive,” she said. “Food stamps doesn’t cover toothpaste, toothbrushes … [and] now the money is also going for food.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064885\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064885\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPdelaysfeature00921_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith shops at the Alameda Food Bank on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The added stress of losing her $300 in food aid rippled across her life in ways big and small. It put more obstacles on her path back to the workforce. How would she pay for transportation to jobs? She rationed the mascara, lipstick and deodorant that gave her the confidence to go to interviews.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She had a gig coming up as an usher for an event at the Moscone Center, and she needed an all-black outfit. “I went into a panic because I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, I need to buy black shoes.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She aims to apply for three jobs a day. “I need to be focusing,” she said. “When you’re almost in a panic, how can you focus and how can you be productive?”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The power of choice\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The next week, Smith pushed a shopping cart through the Alameda Food Bank. She had applied for CalFresh, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063660/california-moves-to-protect-calfresh-payments-from-federal-confusion-and-chaos\">California’s version of SNAP\u003c/a>, in early October, after she lost her job as a home health aide, and she received emergency benefits for the month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While she waited on approval, she created a daily schedule of food pantries and bused from one to another, patching together meals from the hodgepodge of dry goods and produce available and figuring out which were worth her time. This bank, with its brand new building and heaping bins of apples and potatoes, was one of the best she’d found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064445\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064445\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00731_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith shops at the Alameda Food Bank on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Today, she was most excited about the fresh strawberries — usually too expensive to buy, and often starting to mold by the time she found them at food pantries. Those pantries rely heavily on the Alameda County Community Food Bank, which fills their shelves with a mix of food from federal programs, donations, bulk farm purchases and surplus groceries that are sometimes on the verge of expiring.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You have to eat it that day or the next, which makes it hard,” Smith said. These berries, though, looked perfectly fresh.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Each bin listed an item limit on the side, so Smith had learned to shop carefully. “You can get four apples,” she said, hunting through the bin for the largest she could find. “You’ll get fuller with a bigger apple, but they tend to be more bruised. It’s a bit like a scavenger hunt.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That the new, sprawling food bank was designed to mimic the experience of shopping wasn’t lost on Smith. “I like this place because it makes you feel more like a regular person,” she said. “You get to shop for your food.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>She was grateful for the semblance of choice, but what the SNAP program provided was the real thing — something people pointed out again and again as they faced the prospect of going without their benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I get to cook. I refuse to go to them fast-food places,” said Anthony Cassidy, standing outside the food bank with a basket full of fruits and vegetables. “I like making stew.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 75-year-old Vietnam War veteran said he spent decades addicted to heroin, in and out of prison and homelessness, and was now sober and stably housed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m bound and determined to live out my days healthy and free,” he said. “SNAP has really helped me, allowed me to get some food that I like instead of stuff that I had to get.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a single week, Smith spent some 20 hours busing to and from six pantries, waiting in line and picking up food.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My body’s tired today, really tired,” she said, the day after her trip to the Alameda Food Bank. She was back in East Oakland, making her way to the bus stop after visiting two food pantries on MacArthur Boulevard. She struggled under the weight of three heavy tote bags loaded with watermelon, butternut squash, potatoes and pears. In her free hand, she balanced a pizza, an unexpected pantry score.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s definitely going to hurt later on tonight,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064448\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064448\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01284_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith stands across advertisements for CalFresh as she holds her groceries from the Alameda Food Bank at the 12th Street BART Station in Oakland on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Smith has lupus, an autoimmune condition that makes her joints ache and some days, leaves her too exhausted to get out of bed. She was diagnosed at 8 years old, she said, after a series of mysterious rashes, fevers and aches had perplexed doctors for nearly two years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2023, the illness forced her to come home from college at Emory University in Atlanta. She developed pericarditis, a swelling of the tissue surrounding her heart, and doctors recommended she take a break.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was on a lot of steroids, couldn’t walk at that point,” she said. Still, she was devastated to leave the school, where she was on a pre-med track. “I loved it so much,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back home after a 30-minute bus ride and 10-minute walk, Smith and her boyfriend, 24-year-old Kelinde Secrease, hoisted the groceries onto the counter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She pulled eggs from a tote triumphantly. The pantries often ran out, and she’d gotten in line an hour and a half before the East Oakland Collective opened in order to bring these home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064450\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064450\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE01577_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trozalla Smith puts away groceries from the Alameda food bank in her fridge at her family home in San Leandro on Nov. 14, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>A few days earlier, Secrease had caught himself doing something he hadn’t done in a long time: wondering what he wanted to eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I had a realization where I was like, wow — even being able to say ‘What do I want to eat?’ is a very powerful statement that I’m very grateful for,” he said. Before they’d learned to navigate the patchwork of pantries in the area, with Smith out of work and his own hours stuck at just 12 a week, food had been so limited that eating stopped feeling like a choice at all.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Having choices allowed him to enjoy food again. “It doesn’t feel so laborious having to eat because you’re eating something that you really don’t want to,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For people like Smith and Secrease, going without federal food aid doesn’t necessarily mean going hungry. But it pushes their already precarious budget to the breaking point, forcing them to scramble for rent and utilities, bus fare, tampons and toothpaste. Necessity strips away choice, and with it, the small freedoms that make life feel like more than survival. “When you have options, you have freedom,” Secrease said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the moment, the couple figured they had enough food to last them a week. Smith was relieved she’d have that time to focus on applying for jobs and tending to her health. But first they had to chop, freeze, roast and juice their way through the small mountain of produce to keep it from going to waste. After six hours in the kitchen, they had a freezer and refrigerator full of food.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Some relief, but uncertainty remains\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A week into November, Hoover stood in the YMCA residence’s shared kitchen, chopping onion, potato and bell pepper to add to a roasting pan where a whole chicken sizzled in the oven.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I love to cook, it’s one of my favorite things to do,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She’d gotten the bird for under $10 at Trader Joe’s; the rest of the meal came from the Berkeley Food Pantry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064440\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00103_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ana Hoover checks out her groceries at her local Trader Joe’s in Berkeley on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With the month’s food stamps still in limbo amid federal court challenges and the ongoing government shutdown, she called the state’s EBT helpline, hoping for answers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Your CalFresh balance is $0.61,” a recorded voice said. “You have one future benefit added to the account. CalFresh benefits available on Nov. 10 for $298.00.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Oh, my God, what a lifesaver!” Hoover said. “Oh, my God.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She covered her face with her hands and burst into tears. “The stress level — feeling like, how am I going to do this,” she said. “You have no idea what relief.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064441\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064441\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00125_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ana Hoover, whose SNAP benefits were delayed by the government shutdown, uses her EBT card to pay for her groceries at her local Trader Joe’s in Berkeley on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Earlier that week, Smith had come home from a three-hour food pantry trip to a letter from the county. Her CalFresh benefits were being denied, the letter explained, because she had not submitted proof of income. She was deflated and frustrated. “I don’t understand. I don’t have any income,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By mid-November, Smith had landed a part-time nanny position, Secrease was working full-time, midnight to 7 a.m., training robots to fold clothes and bus tables, and Hoover was still picking up gigs while applying for jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Smith was again waiting to hear back about her CalFresh case after submitting new income documents, and Hoover had $58 left in her account — just enough to make a Thanksgiving meal with the free turkey she’d learned a local pantry was offering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064439\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064439\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251113-SNAPDELAYSFEATURE00089_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ana Hoover shops at her local Trader Joe’s in Berkeley on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For both women, the last month had deepened their distrust of a system meant to catch them when they fell. “I have always felt that these types of benefits could end anytime,” Hoover said, but that fear no longer feels hypothetical.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Republicans have long sought to cut federal funding for food benefits, implement stricter work requirements and shift the burden to states. After Trump signed some of those restrictions into law this year, the shutdown showed what could follow if federal benefits are further curtailed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Smith took some comfort in knowing she found a way forward through sheer tenacity, but the effort had caused her lupus to flare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As she lay in bed, she hoped the food in the freezer would last long enough for her to recover. Then she’d pull up her pantry schedule, pack her tote bags and do it all over again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "uc-continues-annual-tuition-hikes-despite-student-appeals-heres-how-much-it-will-increase",
"title": "UC Continues Annual Tuition Hikes Despite Student Appeals. Here’s How Much It Will Increase",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/university-of-california\">University of California\u003c/a> has renewed its policy of annual tuition hikes today after the UC Board of Regents voted 13 to 3 to approve the measure, despite fierce opposition from undergraduates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Broadly, what undergraduates will expect to pay for tuition doesn’t change once they enroll. The model regents approved still allows the system to increase undergraduate tuition and systemwide fees by as much as 5% annually, depending on inflation, and locks in that rate for students enrolling that year for up to six years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Each cohort of incoming students pays the same tuition, but what they pay is more than the previous year’s cohort, and less than what the next cohort will pay. This means that current undergraduate students would see no change to their tuition. Graduate students, however, would continue to see annual increases because they’re not on the cohort model.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The revised plan begins in 2026-27.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This “stability” plan is a way to ensure UC can collect more revenue to finance the ever-increasing costs of educating students that signals consistency and predictability to students and their families, UC officials contend. The approach is a departure from a boom-and-bust cycle at UC in which tuition stays flat for several years until recessions and state cutbacks prompt double-digit tuition spikes in consecutive years. That happened during the 2007 Great Recession. After six years, tuition \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/cost-of-college-california/#:~:text=Here%E2%80%99s%20a%20primer%20on%20how%20costs%20have%20changed%20%E2%80%94%20and%20how%20and%20where%20higher%20education%20can%20be%20affordable.\">had doubled\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The regents first adopted this cohort tuition model in 2021 and it took effect in 2022. Since 2021, tuition for entering undergraduates has risen from \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucop.edu/operating-budget/_files/fees/202223/2022-23.pdf\">$12,570\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucop.edu/operating-budget/_files/fees/202526/2025-26.pdf\">$14,934\u003c/a> this year. UC first began charging tuition in 1970 — the enrollment fees were $450.[aside postID=news_12064357 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251117-UCStrike-08-BL.jpg']Students were livid in 2021 and remained so today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Students should not be fighting for our lives,” said Diego Emilio Bollo, president of the undergraduate student association at UCLA. He spoke at a rally today with dozens of students opposing the tuition plan and said the UC should look elsewhere for money. “The UC should be fighting in Sacramento and in Washington, DC. And the students are not the UC’s backup budget plan.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC says 98% of California students with household incomes below $60,000 and who applied for financial aid don’t pay tuition, though student advocates say some undergraduates still fall through the cracks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regent Michael Cohen, who helped to secure more financial aid for UC students when the board voted to launch the cohort plan in 2021, said he supported the model today because tuition stays flat for individual students for up to six years after they see a tuition hike once. To him, that means students get an increasing discount, as tuition stays flat while inflation rises.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cohen added that the revenue from the tuition increases allowed the UC to enroll 15,000 more new California undergraduates. “That’s remarkable,” he said. State aid alone couldn’t have given more Californians access to the UC, he noted. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis vehemently opposed the continuation of the tuition increases. She said these decisions should be reviewed at least annually, not left alone for years at a time. “Our students sleep in their cars. Our students go to food banks in order to be able to eat,” she said. “I think that any time we raise tuition, we should be going back and understanding whether or not we’ve done every other possible thing to avoid raising tuition.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The original plan proposed today would have led to endless ongoing tuition increases. But students and some regents were critical of the cohort model continuing without end, so the board voted to revisit the model in seven years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Guided by UC Office of the President officials, the board also lowered from 45% to 40% the share of new tuition revenue that flows to undergraduate financial aid. When regents installed this tuition hike plan, the return-to-aid figure was 33%.[aside postID=news_12062080 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/20250929_UCBERKELEY_GC-5-KQED.jpg']Counterintuitively, this means that low- and moderate-income students \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/july25/b2.pdf#page=5\">got thousands more in financial aid\u003c/a> to cover tuition and additional living costs under these tuition increases than they would have had the UC not increased tuition. On the other hand, higher-income students, those from families with incomes above $120,000, generally paid hundreds of dollars more for their cost of attendance because they get less financial aid, median data from UC show. UC projections show that those \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/nov25/b3.pdf#page=8\">trends will continue\u003c/a> through the end of the decade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, some higher-income students receive UC grants from return-to-aid. For example, a quarter of students whose families make between $147,000 and $184,000 \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucop.edu/enrollment-services/data-and-reporting/reports-to-the-regents-on-student-financial-support/2025-guea-student-financial-support-report-nf-final.pdf#page=7\">received a UC grant in 2023-24\u003c/a>. Students receive financial aid based on a federal formula that takes into account household income, money in certain financial accounts and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kiplinger.com/taxes/types-of-nontaxable-income\">untaxed income\u003c/a>, such as life insurance payouts and inheritances.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>About half of in-state undergraduate students at UC live in households with incomes below $120,000, \u003ca href=\"https://accountability.universityofcalifornia.edu/2025/chapters/chapter-2.html#:~:text=31%20percent%20of%20in%2Dstate%20students%2C%20come%20from%20low%2Dincome%C2%A0families.\">UC data show\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Funneling a portion of tuition increases to financial aid has resulted in an extra roughly $1 billion in financial aid for students, a UC finance official said today. Overall, 35% of UC undergraduates from California take out loans to attend the system and the average debt has been constant at about $17,000, said Shawn Brick, who heads financial aid, at the regents meeting. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003ch2>UC budget struggles\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>The drop in return-to-aid is a way to route more funding to campuses that have been rocked by federal cutbacks tied up in legal battles and state support that is less than Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state Legislature had indicated the UC \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept25/f2.pdf#page=3\">would receive in past years\u003c/a>.[aside postID=news_12056908 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/230817-UC-BERKELEY-CAMPUS-MD-03-1020x680.jpg']Already, the UC is enrolling about 4,000 more California students than the state is giving them money for. Because of this, UC reported that it brings in less money per student to educate them than the system collected four years ago — down to $28,000 from $30,000.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly 800 employees have been laid off across the UC system this year, UC President James B. Milliken said. “These layoffs reflect the seriousness of the financial pressures we are navigating,” he said this morning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC has also fought to recover 1,600 federal research grants that the Trump administration suspended or terminated. While many have been restored through court orders, 400 are still defunded, totalling $230 million, Milliken said. Meanwhile the UC \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/2025/03/university-of-california/#:~:text=is%20antisemitism.-,UC%20lawsuits,-In%20protecting%20its\">has sued to halt\u003c/a> Trump from changing a formula for how much campuses receive in grant funds to maintain labs. At stake is \u003ca href=\"https://www.chronicle.com/article/trump-wants-to-cut-billions-in-research-spending-heres-how-much-it-might-cost-your-university\">another half-billion dollars\u003c/a>. That money supports jobs and regional economies; the UC is the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://accountability.universityofcalifornia.edu/2025/exec-sum.html\">second-largest employer\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC officials persuaded the regents to make other technical changes that increase the odds that tuition for the next cohort would rise more than it has so far, but tuition increases would still be capped at 5%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One allows UC to defer the financial impact if inflation exceeds 5%. In that case, the percent that is above 5% would be applied to a future year when the inflation rate is lower. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Had this plan been in place since 2022, tuition would have risen by 1.5% \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/nov25/b3.pdf#page=4\">more than it did this year\u003c/a>, UC finance staff said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The UC Regents also agreed to include another one-percentage-point increase in cohort tuition that would be dedicated to building maintenance or another campus need. Still, tuition increases wouldn’t exceed 5%. The system regularly asks for hundreds of millions in money but often gets much less. The system is able to issue bonds for new construction, but the amount is limited. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the original plan today, the additional revenue from this 1% bump would have been limited to structures that service students. Now, the extra 1% can be used by campus chancellors for other spending priorities. The system has a deferred maintenance backlog of $9 billion, UC officials said today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The UC student association said capital projects shouldn’t be paid for with tuition dollars. “We urge the Board to reject the proposed 1% step increase, or commit to dedicating a portion of the revenue to go to vital student supports, such as basic needs, retention programs and health services,” \u003ca href=\"https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MVEZ3qRSLbGP-WwUXrRL6zn_V2oULqa8qEgVCnUMazo/edit?tab=t.0\">the group wrote in a public letter\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003ch2>Some students fall through the cracks\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>Even with generous financial aid, some California students at UC still incur hardship and a bureaucratic runaround. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Joshua Mata entered UC Berkeley in 2019 intent on taking on no debt. He arranged to pay a friend $300 to use the parking spot in her apartment building to park a used van he bought to sleep in. The friend provided him with a key to her apartment so he could bathe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He was no stranger to residing in cars — housing stability was sporadic after he moved to California to attend community college. A year into his studies, he received in-state tuition status. His story is unusual: He lived with his father in China, who taught English, until Mata graduated from high school and moved back to the U.S. to live with his grandmother for a year in Texas before driving to California. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After three years at community college, he transferred to California’s top public university, thinking he’d retain his in-state residency status and the much lower tuition bill, with financial aid to both cover his enrollment fees and some extra money for living costs. A half-semester later, he dropped out: The campus rejected his in-state claim and froze his financial aid, leaving him with a roughly $40,000 bill, he recalled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He wishes the campus gave him more of a heads up during the summer so he could have cleared the issue before school started. “Maybe I’d have a degree by now,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though he re-enrolled in 2023, students with unique financial issues such as Mata must also be looked out for, said Alexis Zaragoza during public comments today. Zaragoza was a UC student regent when the UC board approved the cohort tuition model. While she opposed it, she led board members in increasing how much new tuition revenue flows to financial aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Dozens of those students go through residency and income appeals, but those processes take months– sometimes up to 6 or 7 months, to be resolved. For low-income and even homeless students– those months are crucial. Many students drop out to avoid $30,000-plus charges, but are still charged them,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Asked whether the additional revenue from tuition would flow toward more student services positions such as financial aid staff or those that deal with residency disputes, UC spokesperson Omar Rodriguez wrote in an email that “any new funding generated for operating support will be used at the discretion of each location to meet their local needs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few dozen students briefly shut down the meeting on the vote today after they shouted prewritten slogans at regents condemning the ongoing tuition increases. The regents asked UC police to declare an unlawful assembly and a row of police clutching batons and wearing helmets with facial shields assembled as the students left the meeting chamber. There was no confrontation between police and protesters. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2025/11/uc-tuition/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/university-of-california\">University of California\u003c/a> has renewed its policy of annual tuition hikes today after the UC Board of Regents voted 13 to 3 to approve the measure, despite fierce opposition from undergraduates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Broadly, what undergraduates will expect to pay for tuition doesn’t change once they enroll. The model regents approved still allows the system to increase undergraduate tuition and systemwide fees by as much as 5% annually, depending on inflation, and locks in that rate for students enrolling that year for up to six years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Each cohort of incoming students pays the same tuition, but what they pay is more than the previous year’s cohort, and less than what the next cohort will pay. This means that current undergraduate students would see no change to their tuition. Graduate students, however, would continue to see annual increases because they’re not on the cohort model.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The revised plan begins in 2026-27.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This “stability” plan is a way to ensure UC can collect more revenue to finance the ever-increasing costs of educating students that signals consistency and predictability to students and their families, UC officials contend. The approach is a departure from a boom-and-bust cycle at UC in which tuition stays flat for several years until recessions and state cutbacks prompt double-digit tuition spikes in consecutive years. That happened during the 2007 Great Recession. After six years, tuition \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/cost-of-college-california/#:~:text=Here%E2%80%99s%20a%20primer%20on%20how%20costs%20have%20changed%20%E2%80%94%20and%20how%20and%20where%20higher%20education%20can%20be%20affordable.\">had doubled\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The regents first adopted this cohort tuition model in 2021 and it took effect in 2022. Since 2021, tuition for entering undergraduates has risen from \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucop.edu/operating-budget/_files/fees/202223/2022-23.pdf\">$12,570\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucop.edu/operating-budget/_files/fees/202526/2025-26.pdf\">$14,934\u003c/a> this year. UC first began charging tuition in 1970 — the enrollment fees were $450.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Students were livid in 2021 and remained so today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Students should not be fighting for our lives,” said Diego Emilio Bollo, president of the undergraduate student association at UCLA. He spoke at a rally today with dozens of students opposing the tuition plan and said the UC should look elsewhere for money. “The UC should be fighting in Sacramento and in Washington, DC. And the students are not the UC’s backup budget plan.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC says 98% of California students with household incomes below $60,000 and who applied for financial aid don’t pay tuition, though student advocates say some undergraduates still fall through the cracks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regent Michael Cohen, who helped to secure more financial aid for UC students when the board voted to launch the cohort plan in 2021, said he supported the model today because tuition stays flat for individual students for up to six years after they see a tuition hike once. To him, that means students get an increasing discount, as tuition stays flat while inflation rises.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cohen added that the revenue from the tuition increases allowed the UC to enroll 15,000 more new California undergraduates. “That’s remarkable,” he said. State aid alone couldn’t have given more Californians access to the UC, he noted. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis vehemently opposed the continuation of the tuition increases. She said these decisions should be reviewed at least annually, not left alone for years at a time. “Our students sleep in their cars. Our students go to food banks in order to be able to eat,” she said. “I think that any time we raise tuition, we should be going back and understanding whether or not we’ve done every other possible thing to avoid raising tuition.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The original plan proposed today would have led to endless ongoing tuition increases. But students and some regents were critical of the cohort model continuing without end, so the board voted to revisit the model in seven years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Guided by UC Office of the President officials, the board also lowered from 45% to 40% the share of new tuition revenue that flows to undergraduate financial aid. When regents installed this tuition hike plan, the return-to-aid figure was 33%.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Counterintuitively, this means that low- and moderate-income students \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/july25/b2.pdf#page=5\">got thousands more in financial aid\u003c/a> to cover tuition and additional living costs under these tuition increases than they would have had the UC not increased tuition. On the other hand, higher-income students, those from families with incomes above $120,000, generally paid hundreds of dollars more for their cost of attendance because they get less financial aid, median data from UC show. UC projections show that those \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/nov25/b3.pdf#page=8\">trends will continue\u003c/a> through the end of the decade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, some higher-income students receive UC grants from return-to-aid. For example, a quarter of students whose families make between $147,000 and $184,000 \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucop.edu/enrollment-services/data-and-reporting/reports-to-the-regents-on-student-financial-support/2025-guea-student-financial-support-report-nf-final.pdf#page=7\">received a UC grant in 2023-24\u003c/a>. Students receive financial aid based on a federal formula that takes into account household income, money in certain financial accounts and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kiplinger.com/taxes/types-of-nontaxable-income\">untaxed income\u003c/a>, such as life insurance payouts and inheritances.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>About half of in-state undergraduate students at UC live in households with incomes below $120,000, \u003ca href=\"https://accountability.universityofcalifornia.edu/2025/chapters/chapter-2.html#:~:text=31%20percent%20of%20in%2Dstate%20students%2C%20come%20from%20low%2Dincome%C2%A0families.\">UC data show\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Funneling a portion of tuition increases to financial aid has resulted in an extra roughly $1 billion in financial aid for students, a UC finance official said today. Overall, 35% of UC undergraduates from California take out loans to attend the system and the average debt has been constant at about $17,000, said Shawn Brick, who heads financial aid, at the regents meeting. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003ch2>UC budget struggles\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>The drop in return-to-aid is a way to route more funding to campuses that have been rocked by federal cutbacks tied up in legal battles and state support that is less than Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state Legislature had indicated the UC \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept25/f2.pdf#page=3\">would receive in past years\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Already, the UC is enrolling about 4,000 more California students than the state is giving them money for. Because of this, UC reported that it brings in less money per student to educate them than the system collected four years ago — down to $28,000 from $30,000.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly 800 employees have been laid off across the UC system this year, UC President James B. Milliken said. “These layoffs reflect the seriousness of the financial pressures we are navigating,” he said this morning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC has also fought to recover 1,600 federal research grants that the Trump administration suspended or terminated. While many have been restored through court orders, 400 are still defunded, totalling $230 million, Milliken said. Meanwhile the UC \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/2025/03/university-of-california/#:~:text=is%20antisemitism.-,UC%20lawsuits,-In%20protecting%20its\">has sued to halt\u003c/a> Trump from changing a formula for how much campuses receive in grant funds to maintain labs. At stake is \u003ca href=\"https://www.chronicle.com/article/trump-wants-to-cut-billions-in-research-spending-heres-how-much-it-might-cost-your-university\">another half-billion dollars\u003c/a>. That money supports jobs and regional economies; the UC is the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://accountability.universityofcalifornia.edu/2025/exec-sum.html\">second-largest employer\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC officials persuaded the regents to make other technical changes that increase the odds that tuition for the next cohort would rise more than it has so far, but tuition increases would still be capped at 5%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One allows UC to defer the financial impact if inflation exceeds 5%. In that case, the percent that is above 5% would be applied to a future year when the inflation rate is lower. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Had this plan been in place since 2022, tuition would have risen by 1.5% \u003ca href=\"https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/nov25/b3.pdf#page=4\">more than it did this year\u003c/a>, UC finance staff said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The UC Regents also agreed to include another one-percentage-point increase in cohort tuition that would be dedicated to building maintenance or another campus need. Still, tuition increases wouldn’t exceed 5%. The system regularly asks for hundreds of millions in money but often gets much less. The system is able to issue bonds for new construction, but the amount is limited. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the original plan today, the additional revenue from this 1% bump would have been limited to structures that service students. Now, the extra 1% can be used by campus chancellors for other spending priorities. The system has a deferred maintenance backlog of $9 billion, UC officials said today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The UC student association said capital projects shouldn’t be paid for with tuition dollars. “We urge the Board to reject the proposed 1% step increase, or commit to dedicating a portion of the revenue to go to vital student supports, such as basic needs, retention programs and health services,” \u003ca href=\"https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MVEZ3qRSLbGP-WwUXrRL6zn_V2oULqa8qEgVCnUMazo/edit?tab=t.0\">the group wrote in a public letter\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003ch2>Some students fall through the cracks\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>Even with generous financial aid, some California students at UC still incur hardship and a bureaucratic runaround. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Joshua Mata entered UC Berkeley in 2019 intent on taking on no debt. He arranged to pay a friend $300 to use the parking spot in her apartment building to park a used van he bought to sleep in. The friend provided him with a key to her apartment so he could bathe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He was no stranger to residing in cars — housing stability was sporadic after he moved to California to attend community college. A year into his studies, he received in-state tuition status. His story is unusual: He lived with his father in China, who taught English, until Mata graduated from high school and moved back to the U.S. to live with his grandmother for a year in Texas before driving to California. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After three years at community college, he transferred to California’s top public university, thinking he’d retain his in-state residency status and the much lower tuition bill, with financial aid to both cover his enrollment fees and some extra money for living costs. A half-semester later, he dropped out: The campus rejected his in-state claim and froze his financial aid, leaving him with a roughly $40,000 bill, he recalled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He wishes the campus gave him more of a heads up during the summer so he could have cleared the issue before school started. “Maybe I’d have a degree by now,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though he re-enrolled in 2023, students with unique financial issues such as Mata must also be looked out for, said Alexis Zaragoza during public comments today. Zaragoza was a UC student regent when the UC board approved the cohort tuition model. While she opposed it, she led board members in increasing how much new tuition revenue flows to financial aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Dozens of those students go through residency and income appeals, but those processes take months– sometimes up to 6 or 7 months, to be resolved. For low-income and even homeless students– those months are crucial. Many students drop out to avoid $30,000-plus charges, but are still charged them,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Asked whether the additional revenue from tuition would flow toward more student services positions such as financial aid staff or those that deal with residency disputes, UC spokesperson Omar Rodriguez wrote in an email that “any new funding generated for operating support will be used at the discretion of each location to meet their local needs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few dozen students briefly shut down the meeting on the vote today after they shouted prewritten slogans at regents condemning the ongoing tuition increases. The regents asked UC police to declare an unlawful assembly and a row of police clutching batons and wearing helmets with facial shields assembled as the students left the meeting chamber. There was no confrontation between police and protesters. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2025/11/uc-tuition/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"mindshift": {
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"order": 12
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
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"possible": {
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"pri-the-world": {
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},
"radiolab": {
"id": "radiolab",
"title": "Radiolab",
"info": "A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.",
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},
"reveal": {
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