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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/east-bay\">Hayward\u003c/a> resident Lyle Prijoles was 40 years old when he was killed in a military operation in the Philippines, along with 18 other people. Another American, 26-year-old Kai Sorem of Seattle, was also killed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Three months later, in a \u003ca href=\"https://jayapal.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Toboso-Killings-Letter.pdf\">letter\u003c/a> delivered to Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez, U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Seattle, and 10 other members of Congress urged the Philippine government to ensure an “independent, impartial, and credible” inquiry into the killings.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>What exactly happened in Toboso remains disputed. According to reporting by \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/communist-new-peoples-army-rebels-philippines-americans-71d868ad48c27476348ea2ae16ee7b97\">\u003cem>the Associated Press\u003c/em>,\u003c/a> the Philippine government’s National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict suspected those 19 people to be part of the New People’s Army — the armed wing of the Philippines’ communist insurgency. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12083275\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Activists in the Bay Area remember Lyle Prijoles. Lawmakers signed a letter demanding an independent and credible investigation from an entity outside of the Philippine government. (Courtesy of Bayan USA)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sen. Adam Schiff signed the July 21 letter, along with Sens. Jeff Merkley, Chris Van Hollen and eight U.S. House members. 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The resolution passed during ILWU Local 6’s strike at the C&H sugar refinery in Crockett, California, which sources sugar from Negros. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jayapal’s letter argued that inquiry from within the Philippine government cannot stand on its own, pointing to a lack of cooperation from security forces and their refusal to hand over key evidence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We really cannot expect a fair and independent and thorough investigation from these agencies,” said AK Guillen, an attorney with the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in the Philippines, “because any investigation conducted by the Philippine government is spearheaded by the very same agencies leading the Philippine counterinsurgency campaign.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Physical evidence has been difficult to obtain. Dr. Raquel Fortun, a forensic pathologist, conducted autopsies in April, at the request of victims’ relatives, presenting her initial findings on May 7. She said the bodies were decomposed, misidentified, left in water and missing clothing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12083272\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Activists in the Bay Area hold a memorial for activist Lyle Prijoles. (Courtesy of Bayan USA)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Filipino Americans in the Bay Area, the case is not the first of its kind. Prijoles met\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Brandon Lee, a San Francisco activist, in an Asian American studies class in 2004. Lee was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11767453/bay-area-filipinos-stand-up-for-activist-shot-in-the-philippines\">shot outside his home in the Philippines in 2019\u003c/a> and left paralyzed. No one has been charged in the shooting. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://ph.usembassy.gov/fact-sheet-u-s-philippines-defense-and-security-partnership/\">U.S. Embassy data\u003c/a>, the Philippines is the largest recipient of U.S. military assistance in the Indo-Pacific region. Since 2015, it has received more than $1.14 billion (the equivalent of 57 billion Philippine pesos) in equipment, training and defense funding.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sorem’s sibling PJ said the families are “fighting to end state-sanctioned violence and US military funding of the AFP.” \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Human rights organizations, including the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, BAYAN USA and Malaya Movement USA, described the operation as a “massacre executed by the Armed Forces of the Philippines who conducted indiscriminate firing.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Philippine Commission on Human Rights opened its own \u003ca href=\"https://chr.gov.ph/statement-of-the-commission-on-human-rights-on-the-armed-clash-in-negros-occidental/\">investigation\u003c/a> on April 26, citing “inconsistencies in the identities of those dead” and reports that more than a hundred families were displaced. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Our family has come to terms that we will never get the type of justice found with a jury and a judge or even jail time,” Prijoles’ sister, Lily, said in a statement. “The Philippine Army should not be shooting at civilians and hiding their mistakes.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 10 passed a resolution condemning the Army’s actions in Negros, where sugar farmers have long organized. The resolution passed during ILWU Local 6’s strike at the C&H sugar refinery in Crockett, California, which sources sugar from Negros. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jayapal’s letter argued that inquiry from within the Philippine government cannot stand on its own, pointing to a lack of cooperation from security forces and their refusal to hand over key evidence. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We really cannot expect a fair and independent and thorough investigation from these agencies,” said AK Guillen, an attorney with the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in the Philippines, “because any investigation conducted by the Philippine government is spearheaded by the very same agencies leading the Philippine counterinsurgency campaign.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Physical evidence has been difficult to obtain. Dr. Raquel Fortun, a forensic pathologist, conducted autopsies in April, at the request of victims’ relatives, presenting her initial findings on May 7. She said the bodies were decomposed, misidentified, left in water and missing clothing. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For Filipino Americans in the Bay Area, the case is not the first of its kind. Prijoles met\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Brandon Lee, a San Francisco activist, in an Asian American studies class in 2004. Lee was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11767453/bay-area-filipinos-stand-up-for-activist-shot-in-the-philippines\">shot outside his home in the Philippines in 2019\u003c/a> and left paralyzed. No one has been charged in the shooting. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://ph.usembassy.gov/fact-sheet-u-s-philippines-defense-and-security-partnership/\">U.S. Embassy data\u003c/a>, the Philippines is the largest recipient of U.S. military assistance in the Indo-Pacific region. Since 2015, it has received more than $1.14 billion (the equivalent of 57 billion Philippine pesos) in equipment, training and defense funding.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sorem’s sibling PJ said the families are “fighting to end state-sanctioned violence and US military funding of the AFP.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Lyle Prijoles of Hayward was one of 19 people killed by the Philippine military in an April operation, and 11 members of Congress are now pushing for an investigation.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/east-bay\">Hayward\u003c/a> resident Lyle Prijoles was 40 years old when he was killed in a military operation in the Philippines, along with 18 other people. Another American, 26-year-old Kai Sorem of Seattle, was also killed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Three months later, in a \u003ca href=\"https://jayapal.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Toboso-Killings-Letter.pdf\">letter\u003c/a> delivered to Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez, U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Seattle, and 10 other members of Congress urged the Philippine government to ensure an “independent, impartial, and credible” inquiry into the killings.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>What exactly happened in Toboso remains disputed. According to reporting by \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/communist-new-peoples-army-rebels-philippines-americans-71d868ad48c27476348ea2ae16ee7b97\">\u003cem>the Associated Press\u003c/em>,\u003c/a> the Philippine government’s National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict suspected those 19 people to be part of the New People’s Army — the armed wing of the Philippines’ communist insurgency. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12083275\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-06-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Activists in the Bay Area remember Lyle Prijoles. Lawmakers signed a letter demanding an independent and credible investigation from an entity outside of the Philippine government. (Courtesy of Bayan USA)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sen. Adam Schiff signed the July 21 letter, along with Sens. Jeff Merkley, Chris Van Hollen and eight U.S. House members. Families of both Prijoles and Sorem, along with human rights lawyers and union members, held an online press conference on Thursday to push the letter into public view. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Human rights organizations, including the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, BAYAN USA and Malaya Movement USA, described the operation as a “massacre executed by the Armed Forces of the Philippines who conducted indiscriminate firing.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Philippine Commission on Human Rights opened its own \u003ca href=\"https://chr.gov.ph/statement-of-the-commission-on-human-rights-on-the-armed-clash-in-negros-occidental/\">investigation\u003c/a> on April 26, citing “inconsistencies in the identities of those dead” and reports that more than a hundred families were displaced. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our family has come to terms that we will never get the type of justice found with a jury and a judge or even jail time,” Prijoles’ sister, Lily, said in a statement. “The Philippine Army should not be shooting at civilians and hiding their mistakes.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 10 passed a resolution condemning the Army’s actions in Negros, where sugar farmers have long organized. The resolution passed during ILWU Local 6’s strike at the C&H sugar refinery in Crockett, California, which sources sugar from Negros. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jayapal’s letter argued that inquiry from within the Philippine government cannot stand on its own, pointing to a lack of cooperation from security forces and their refusal to hand over key evidence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We really cannot expect a fair and independent and thorough investigation from these agencies,” said AK Guillen, an attorney with the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in the Philippines, “because any investigation conducted by the Philippine government is spearheaded by the very same agencies leading the Philippine counterinsurgency campaign.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Physical evidence has been difficult to obtain. Dr. Raquel Fortun, a forensic pathologist, conducted autopsies in April, at the request of victims’ relatives, presenting her initial findings on May 7. She said the bodies were decomposed, misidentified, left in water and missing clothing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12083272\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260512-Lyle-Prijoles-03-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Activists in the Bay Area hold a memorial for activist Lyle Prijoles. (Courtesy of Bayan USA)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Filipino Americans in the Bay Area, the case is not the first of its kind. Prijoles met\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Brandon Lee, a San Francisco activist, in an Asian American studies class in 2004. Lee was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11767453/bay-area-filipinos-stand-up-for-activist-shot-in-the-philippines\">shot outside his home in the Philippines in 2019\u003c/a> and left paralyzed. No one has been charged in the shooting. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://ph.usembassy.gov/fact-sheet-u-s-philippines-defense-and-security-partnership/\">U.S. Embassy data\u003c/a>, the Philippines is the largest recipient of U.S. military assistance in the Indo-Pacific region. Since 2015, it has received more than $1.14 billion (the equivalent of 57 billion Philippine pesos) in equipment, training and defense funding.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sorem’s sibling PJ said the families are “fighting to end state-sanctioned violence and US military funding of the AFP.” \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "california-teacher-misconduct-database-bill-failed-al-muratsuchi",
"title": "California Lawmakers Fail to Fix Warning System for Teacher Misconduct — Again",
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"headTitle": "California Lawmakers Fail to Fix Warning System for Teacher Misconduct — Again | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/\">\u003cem>KQED\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>. \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.propublica.org/newsletters/dispatches\">\u003cem>Sign up for Dispatches\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> to get stories like this one as soon as they are published. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A last-ditch legislative attempt to help California school districts keep problematic teachers out of the classroom has collapsed following opposition from unions and the state teacher licensing agency that a proposed searchable database would violate privacy and subject educators to unfair treatment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed database, introduced by a Democratic member of the state Assembly in June, would have allowed schools to see if applicants for public school teaching positions had been reported to the state after they were fired or resigned over claims of misconduct. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The California Federation of Teachers pushed back, warning that teachers could land in the database even if schools had not determined they committed serious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We would support legislation that targets substantiated reports of egregious misconduct,” said Tristan Brown, a lobbyist with the California Federation of Teachers. “We live in a state with Silicon Valley. The state should be able to support a system that is up to date and tracking substantiated reports of misconduct.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Democratic Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi had proposed to make it easier for schools to screen teacher applicants after a KQED-ProPublica investigation published in May. The news outlets revealed how delays and inaction, combined with a lack of transparency, allowed educators to get new jobs after school districts reported them to the state teacher licensing agency for sexual harassment or other misconduct.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093325\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a Democrat who introduced the teacher accountability bill, said his office was “confronted with a lot of resistance” over whether it would lead to unfair treatment of the accused. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A similar effort by Republican lawmakers to address the issue also hit roadblocks earlier this year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When the safety of a child does not meet a legislative priority, that’s a head-scratcher for me,” said Republican Assemblymember Tom Lackey, who co-authored the first attempt to create the teacher database. “I think being sympathetic to the offender is on the wrong side of this issue.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both bills were modeled on a law the Legislature passed in 2025 mandating the creation of a database by next summer that will allow employers to search the names of school support staff, such as bus drivers, custodians and teaching assistants, who are under investigation by their schools or have substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The database for school support staff passed after months of tense negotiations. Under that system, employees’ names would be removed from the database if school investigations fail to substantiate claims of egregious misconduct. The bill passed despite opposition from unions, but the system that will be put in place is still being refined. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But that law explicitly does not apply to public school teachers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The system currently in place for public school educators is a patchwork with a fair number of gaps. School districts have long been required to report to the state any teacher who is fired or who resigns due to misconduct. But the state’s teacher licensing agency, which collects all of those reports, is restricted by state law in what information the agency can share while it investigates. The state’s disciplinary process typically takes one year, and teachers could be hired during the investigation period without schools knowing about the claims against them. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California’s publicly accessible online database of credentialed educators does indicate, with a red-flag icon, whether those public school teachers have been disciplined by the state. But it does not explain the reason for the sanction or provide a link to any documents. It is only after the state licensing agency recommends an educator be disciplined that prospective employers can request a summary of the case and the agency’s findings.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Without such details, California school administrators must rely on teachers themselves or their previous employers to provide key information. A law passed in 2024 requires teacher candidates to share their complete job history in education and mandates that school districts ask every previous employer whether a candidate had been reported to the credentialing agency for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. If so, previous schools must share the relevant information. But that law keeps bad actors out of schools only if teachers and schools keep — and provide — accurate records.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For more than a year, California school administrators have lobbied lawmakers for a better way to protect students from those with a history of misconduct. “A database is needed to provide more complete, timely information so that schools can fulfill their responsibility to put trusted adults in positions that work with students,” said Dorothy Johnson, a lobbyist with the Association of California School Administrators, whose members include superintendents, principals and human resources officials. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093305\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Committee of Credentials, a subcommittee of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, meets in Sacramento, California, on March 18, 2026, as part of three days of deliberations. The subcommittee reviews cases involving alleged educator misconduct. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Under \u003ca href=\"https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB1381/id/3448036\">the original bill\u003c/a> authored by Muratsuchi and sponsored by the school administrators association, teachers would be added to a new database if their school districts have reported them to the state for misconduct. Before making job offers, schools would be required to check the database, accessible only to employers, for names of teachers with substantiated and credible complaints of egregious misconduct. Then, schools would be required to request records about misconduct from the districts that reported them. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi said his office was “immediately confronted with a lot of resistance,” with teachers unions raising concerns over fair treatment of the accused. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Brown, the lobbyist for the California Federation of Teachers, said the language in the measure was too broad. He said the union would not object to a database that identifies only teachers with substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct, but the bill also states that reports of “possible misconduct” would be included. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our opposition is really focused on making sure we’re looking at dangerous conduct that we can definitively say happened,” Brown said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Muratsuchi, who pulled language for his bill directly from the previous effort by Republican Assemblymember Kate Sanchez, said his intent was for the database to focus on egregious misconduct reports that were substantiated and credible. Had he had more time, he said, he would have clarified the language through the legislative process and addressed the unions’ concerns. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But he introduced the bill with just weeks left in the legislative session. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Seth Bramble, a lobbyist for the California Teachers Association, the state’s most powerful teachers union, wrote in a statement that the proposed database would lead to “employment consequences for innocent teachers based on allegations later determined to be unfounded.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“CTA unequivocally supports protecting students, ensuring that credible misconduct information is shared with prospective school employers, and preventing individuals who commit egregious misconduct from moving from school to school,” Bramble wrote.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Trump administration singled out teachers unions as obstructions to legislative reforms to protect children when it announced a national crackdown in July on how school districts handle accusations of sexual misconduct by teachers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Teachers’ unions’ demonstrated commitment to shield their members from disciplinary action for gross misconduct cannot trump basic moral and legal responsibilities to students and families,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon wrote in the open letter to state school chiefs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090872/trump-administration-launches-crackdown-on-teacher-sexual-misconduct-following-kqed-propublica-investigation\">McMahon cited\u003c/a> KQED and ProPublica’s finding that California’s teacher licensing agency has not revoked the professional credentials of at least 67 educators who school districts determined had sexually harassed students or committed other sexual misconduct. At least 14 of those educators were rehired by other schools. That included Bay Area math teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.propublica.org/article/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">Jason Agan, who two schools hired\u003c/a> despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop. Agan was removed from the classroom the day after the story was published.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A substitute replaced him for the remainder of the school year.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Agan has denied any sexual motivation in touching students and said during his dismissal hearing at his first school that he touched students only to offer them support.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1653\" height=\"1103\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093306\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg 1653w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1653px) 100vw, 1653px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A photo of teacher Jason Agan in the Rodriguez High School yearbook from 2005 at the Fairfield Civic Center Library in Fairfield, California, on March 24, 2026. Two schools hired Agan despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Commission on Teacher Credentialing, California’s educator licensing agency, joined the unions in objecting to the bill to add teachers to the misconduct database. Jonathon Howard, the government relations manager for the credentialing agency, told Muratsuchi in a June 19 email obtained by KQED and ProPublica that complying with the proposed legislation would “require Commission staff to commit crimes.” Howard cited state laws restricting what information the teacher licensing agency is allowed to share. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi’s bill, Howard said, would expose the agency to “significant liability.” “The Commission does not oppose the goal of ensuring that credentialed educators with substantiated histories of serious misconduct cannot move undetected between schools,” Howard wrote. “However, achieving that goal requires legislation that is legally sound, operationally workable, and fair to the educators whose livelihoods and professional reputations are at stake.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Anita Fitzhugh, a spokesperson for the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, previously told KQED and ProPublica that the agency “stands ready to implement any additional public protections that the Legislature authorizes.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Within weeks of introducing the bill and following opposition, Muratsuchi scrapped the idea of adding teachers reported to the state for egregious misconduct to the database and instead amended the bill to clarify that the teacher licensing agency may penalize administrators who don’t thoroughly vet applicants. The school administrators association withdrew its sponsorship.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi, whose term expires in December, said he still supports more access to information about educators disciplined for serious misconduct. But with the legislative session ending Aug. 31, time is running out.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I tried,” Muratsuchi said. “I hope future Legislatures pick up the ball.” \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The proposed database, introduced by a Democratic member of the state Assembly in June, would have allowed schools to see if applicants for public school teaching positions had been reported to the state after they were fired or resigned over claims of misconduct. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The California Federation of Teachers pushed back, warning that teachers could land in the database even if schools had not determined they committed serious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We would support legislation that targets substantiated reports of egregious misconduct,” said Tristan Brown, a lobbyist with the California Federation of Teachers. “We live in a state with Silicon Valley. The state should be able to support a system that is up to date and tracking substantiated reports of misconduct.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We would support legislation that targets substantiated reports of egregious misconduct,” said Tristan Brown, a lobbyist with the California Federation of Teachers. “We live in a state with Silicon Valley. The state should be able to support a system that is up to date and tracking substantiated reports of misconduct.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Democratic Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi had proposed to make it easier for schools to screen teacher applicants after a KQED-ProPublica investigation published in May. The news outlets revealed how delays and inaction, combined with a lack of transparency, allowed educators to get new jobs after school districts reported them to the state teacher licensing agency for sexual harassment or other misconduct.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Democratic Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi had proposed to make it easier for schools to screen teacher applicants after a KQED-ProPublica investigation published in May. The news outlets revealed how delays and inaction, combined with a lack of transparency, allowed educators to get new jobs after school districts reported them to the state teacher licensing agency for sexual harassment or other misconduct.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093325\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a Democrat who introduced the teacher accountability bill, said his office was “confronted with a lot of resistance” over whether it would lead to unfair treatment of the accused.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A similar effort by Republican lawmakers to address the issue also hit roadblocks earlier this year. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“When the safety of a child does not meet a legislative priority, that’s a head-scratcher for me,” said Republican Assemblymember Tom Lackey, who co-authored the first attempt to create the teacher database. “I think being sympathetic to the offender is on the wrong side of this issue.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“When the safety of a child does not meet a legislative priority, that’s a head-scratcher for me,” said Republican Assemblymember Tom Lackey, who co-authored the first attempt to create the teacher database. “I think being sympathetic to the offender is on the wrong side of this issue.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Both bills were modeled on a law the Legislature passed in 2025 mandating the creation of a database by next summer that will allow employers to search the names of school support staff, such as bus drivers, custodians and teaching assistants, who are under investigation by their schools or have substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Both bills were modeled on a law the Legislature passed in 2025 mandating the creation of a database by next summer that will allow employers to search the names of school support staff, such as bus drivers, custodians and teaching assistants, who are under investigation by their schools or have substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The database for school support staff passed after months of tense negotiations. Under that system, employees’ names would be removed from the database if school investigations fail to substantiate claims of egregious misconduct. The bill passed despite opposition from unions, but the system that will be put in place is still being refined. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The database for school support staff passed after months of tense negotiations. Under that system, employees’ names would be removed from the database if school investigations fail to substantiate claims of egregious misconduct. The bill passed despite opposition from unions, but the system that will be put in place is still being refined. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But that law explicitly does not apply to public school teachers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The system currently in place for public school educators is a patchwork with a fair number of gaps. School districts have long been required to report to the state any teacher who is fired or who resigns due to misconduct. But the state’s teacher licensing agency, which collects all of those reports, is restricted by state law in what information the agency can share while it investigates. The state’s disciplinary process typically takes one year, and teachers could be hired during the investigation period without schools knowing about the claims against them. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The system currently in place for public school educators is a patchwork with a fair number of gaps. School districts have long been required to report to the state any teacher who is fired or who resigns due to misconduct. But the state’s teacher licensing agency, which collects all of those reports, is restricted by state law in what information the agency can share while it investigates. The state’s disciplinary process typically takes one year, and teachers could be hired during the investigation period without schools knowing about the claims against them. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California’s publicly accessible online database of credentialed educators does indicate, with a red-flag icon, whether those public school teachers have been disciplined by the state. But it does not explain the reason for the sanction or provide a link to any documents. It is only after the state licensing agency recommends an educator be disciplined that prospective employers can request a summary of the case and the agency’s findings.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>California’s publicly accessible online database of credentialed educators does indicate, with a red-flag icon, whether those public school teachers have been disciplined by the state. But it does not explain the reason for the sanction or provide a link to any documents. It is only after the state licensing agency recommends an educator be disciplined that prospective employers can request a summary of the case and the agency’s findings.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Without such details, California school administrators must rely on teachers themselves or their previous employers to provide key information. A law passed in 2024 requires teacher candidates to share their complete job history in education and mandates that school districts ask every previous employer whether a candidate had been reported to the credentialing agency for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. If so, previous schools must share the relevant information. But that law keeps bad actors out of schools only if teachers and schools keep — and provide — accurate records.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Without such details, California school administrators must rely on teachers themselves or their previous employers to provide key information. A law passed in 2024 requires teacher candidates to share their complete job history in education and mandates that school districts ask every previous employer whether a candidate had been reported to the credentialing agency for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. If so, previous schools must share the relevant information. But that law keeps bad actors out of schools only if teachers and schools keep — and provide — accurate records.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For more than a year, California school administrators have lobbied lawmakers for a better way to protect students from those with a history of misconduct. “A database is needed to provide more complete, timely information so that schools can fulfill their responsibility to put trusted adults in positions that work with students,” said Dorothy Johnson, a lobbyist with the Association of California School Administrators, whose members include superintendents, principals and human resources officials. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>For more than a year, California school administrators have lobbied lawmakers for a better way to protect students from those with a history of misconduct. “A database is needed to provide more complete, timely information so that schools can fulfill their responsibility to put trusted adults in positions that work with students,” said Dorothy Johnson, a lobbyist with the Association of California School Administrators, whose members include superintendents, principals and human resources officials. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093305\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Committee of Credentials, a subcommittee of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, meets in Sacramento, California, on March 18, 2026, as part of three days of deliberations. The subcommittee reviews cases involving alleged educator misconduct.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093305\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Committee of Credentials, a subcommittee of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, meets in Sacramento, California, on March 18, 2026, as part of three days of deliberations. The subcommittee reviews cases involving alleged educator misconduct.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Under \u003ca href=\"https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB1381/id/3448036\">the original bill\u003c/a> authored by Muratsuchi and sponsored by the school administrators association, teachers would be added to a new database if their school districts have reported them to the state for misconduct. Before making job offers, schools would be required to check the database, accessible only to employers, for names of teachers with substantiated and credible complaints of egregious misconduct. Then, schools would be required to request records about misconduct from the districts that reported them. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Under \u003ca href=\"https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB1381/id/3448036\">the original bill\u003c/a> authored by Muratsuchi and sponsored by the school administrators association, teachers would be added to a new database if their school districts have reported them to the state for misconduct. Before making job offers, schools would be required to check the database, accessible only to employers, for names of teachers with substantiated and credible complaints of egregious misconduct. Then, schools would be required to request records about misconduct from the districts that reported them. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi said his office was “immediately confronted with a lot of resistance,” with teachers unions raising concerns over fair treatment of the accused. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi said his office was “immediately confronted with a lot of resistance,” with teachers unions raising concerns over fair treatment of the accused. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Brown, the lobbyist for the California Federation of Teachers, said the language in the measure was too broad. He said the union would not object to a database that identifies only teachers with substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct, but the bill also states that reports of “possible misconduct” would be included. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Brown, the lobbyist for the California Federation of Teachers, said the language in the measure was too broad. He said the union would not object to a database that identifies only teachers with substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct, but the bill also states that reports of “possible misconduct” would be included. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Our opposition is really focused on making sure we’re looking at dangerous conduct that we can definitively say happened,” Brown said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Muratsuchi, who pulled language for his bill directly from the previous effort by Republican Assemblymember Kate Sanchez, said his intent was for the database to focus on egregious misconduct reports that were substantiated and credible. Had he had more time, he said, he would have clarified the language through the legislative process and addressed the unions’ concerns. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Our opposition is really focused on making sure we’re looking at dangerous conduct that we can definitively say happened,” Brown said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Muratsuchi, who pulled language for his bill directly from the previous effort by Republican Assemblymember Kate Sanchez, said his intent was for the database to focus on egregious misconduct reports that were substantiated and credible. Had he had more time, he said, he would have clarified the language through the legislative process and addressed the unions’ concerns. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But he introduced the bill with just weeks left in the legislative session. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Seth Bramble, a lobbyist for the California Teachers Association, the state’s most powerful teachers union, wrote in a statement that the proposed database would lead to “employment consequences for innocent teachers based on allegations later determined to be unfounded.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Seth Bramble, a lobbyist for the California Teachers Association, the state’s most powerful teachers union, wrote in a statement that the proposed database would lead to “employment consequences for innocent teachers based on allegations later determined to be unfounded.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“CTA unequivocally supports protecting students, ensuring that credible misconduct information is shared with prospective school employers, and preventing individuals who commit egregious misconduct from moving from school to school,” Bramble wrote.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“CTA unequivocally supports protecting students, ensuring that credible misconduct information is shared with prospective school employers, and preventing individuals who commit egregious misconduct from moving from school to school,” Bramble wrote.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Trump administration singled out teachers unions as obstructions to legislative reforms to protect children when it announced a national crackdown in July on how school districts handle accusations of sexual misconduct by teachers.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The Trump administration singled out teachers unions as obstructions to legislative reforms to protect children when it announced a national crackdown in July on how school districts handle accusations of sexual misconduct by teachers.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Teachers’ unions’ demonstrated commitment to shield their members from disciplinary action for gross misconduct cannot trump basic moral and legal responsibilities to students and families,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon wrote in the open letter to state school chiefs. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Teachers’ unions’ demonstrated commitment to shield their members from disciplinary action for gross misconduct cannot trump basic moral and legal responsibilities to students and families,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon wrote in the open letter to state school chiefs. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090872/trump-administration-launches-crackdown-on-teacher-sexual-misconduct-following-kqed-propublica-investigation\">McMahon cited\u003c/a> KQED and ProPublica’s finding that California’s teacher licensing agency has not revoked the professional credentials of at least 67 educators who school districts determined had sexually harassed students or committed other sexual misconduct. At least 14 of those educators were rehired by other schools. That included Bay Area math teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.propublica.org/article/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">Jason Agan, who two schools hired\u003c/a> despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop. Agan was removed from the classroom the day after the story was published.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090872/trump-administration-launches-crackdown-on-teacher-sexual-misconduct-following-kqed-propublica-investigation\">McMahon cited\u003c/a> KQED and ProPublica’s finding that California’s teacher licensing agency has not revoked the professional credentials of at least 67 educators who school districts determined had sexually harassed students or committed other sexual misconduct. At least 14 of those educators were rehired by other schools. That included Bay Area math teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.propublica.org/article/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">Jason Agan, who two schools hired\u003c/a> despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop. Agan was removed from the classroom the day after the story was published.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A substitute replaced him for the remainder of the school year.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Agan has denied any sexual motivation in touching students and said during his dismissal hearing at his first school that he touched students only to offer them support.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Agan has denied any sexual motivation in touching students and said during his dismissal hearing at his first school that he touched students only to offer them support.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093306\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg 1653w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A photo of teacher Jason Agan in the Rodriguez High School yearbook from 2005 at the Fairfield Civic Center Library in Fairfield, California, on March 24, 2026. Two schools hired Agan despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093306\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A photo of teacher Jason Agan in the Rodriguez High School yearbook from 2005 at the Fairfield Civic Center Library in Fairfield, California, on March 24, 2026. Two schools hired Agan despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Commission on Teacher Credentialing, California’s educator licensing agency, joined the unions in objecting to the bill to add teachers to the misconduct database. Jonathon Howard, the government relations manager for the credentialing agency, told Muratsuchi in a June 19 email obtained by KQED and ProPublica that complying with the proposed legislation would “require Commission staff to commit crimes.” Howard cited state laws restricting what information the teacher licensing agency is allowed to share. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The Commission on Teacher Credentialing, California’s educator licensing agency, joined the unions in objecting to the bill to add teachers to the misconduct database. Jonathon Howard, the government relations manager for the credentialing agency, told Muratsuchi in a June 19 email obtained by KQED and ProPublica that complying with the proposed legislation would “require Commission staff to commit crimes.” Howard cited state laws restricting what information the teacher licensing agency is allowed to share. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi’s bill, Howard said, would expose the agency to “significant liability.” “The Commission does not oppose the goal of ensuring that credentialed educators with substantiated histories of serious misconduct cannot move undetected between schools,” Howard wrote. “However, achieving that goal requires legislation that is legally sound, operationally workable, and fair to the educators whose livelihoods and professional reputations are at stake.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi’s bill, Howard said, would expose the agency to “significant liability.” “The Commission does not oppose the goal of ensuring that credentialed educators with substantiated histories of serious misconduct cannot move undetected between schools,” Howard wrote. “However, achieving that goal requires legislation that is legally sound, operationally workable, and fair to the educators whose livelihoods and professional reputations are at stake.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Anita Fitzhugh, a spokesperson for the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, previously told KQED and ProPublica that the agency “stands ready to implement any additional public protections that the Legislature authorizes.” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Anita Fitzhugh, a spokesperson for the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, previously told KQED and ProPublica that the agency “stands ready to implement any additional public protections that the Legislature authorizes.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Within weeks of introducing the bill and following opposition, Muratsuchi scrapped the idea of adding teachers reported to the state for egregious misconduct to the database and instead amended the bill to clarify that the teacher licensing agency may penalize administrators who don’t thoroughly vet applicants. The school administrators association withdrew its sponsorship.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Within weeks of introducing the bill and following opposition, Muratsuchi scrapped the idea of adding teachers reported to the state for egregious misconduct to the database and instead amended the bill to clarify that the teacher licensing agency may penalize administrators who don’t thoroughly vet applicants. The school administrators association withdrew its sponsorship.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi, whose term expires in December, said he still supports more access to information about educators disciplined for serious misconduct. But with the legislative session ending Aug. 31, time is running out.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi, whose term expires in December, said he still supports more access to information about educators disciplined for serious misconduct. But with the legislative session ending Aug. 31, time is running out.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I tried,” Muratsuchi said. “I hope future Legislatures pick up the ball.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "California is set to launch a database for school support staff, such as bus drivers and janitors, with substantiated claims of egregious misconduct. Setting up a similar system for public school teachers, however, is proving more complicated.",
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"title": "California Lawmakers Fail to Fix Warning System for Teacher Misconduct — Again | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/\">\u003cem>KQED\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>. \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.propublica.org/newsletters/dispatches\">\u003cem>Sign up for Dispatches\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> to get stories like this one as soon as they are published. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A last-ditch legislative attempt to help California school districts keep problematic teachers out of the classroom has collapsed following opposition from unions and the state teacher licensing agency that a proposed searchable database would violate privacy and subject educators to unfair treatment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed database, introduced by a Democratic member of the state Assembly in June, would have allowed schools to see if applicants for public school teaching positions had been reported to the state after they were fired or resigned over claims of misconduct. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The California Federation of Teachers pushed back, warning that teachers could land in the database even if schools had not determined they committed serious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We would support legislation that targets substantiated reports of egregious misconduct,” said Tristan Brown, a lobbyist with the California Federation of Teachers. “We live in a state with Silicon Valley. The state should be able to support a system that is up to date and tracking substantiated reports of misconduct.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Democratic Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi had proposed to make it easier for schools to screen teacher applicants after a KQED-ProPublica investigation published in May. The news outlets revealed how delays and inaction, combined with a lack of transparency, allowed educators to get new jobs after school districts reported them to the state teacher licensing agency for sexual harassment or other misconduct.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093325\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2231342591-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a Democrat who introduced the teacher accountability bill, said his office was “confronted with a lot of resistance” over whether it would lead to unfair treatment of the accused. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A similar effort by Republican lawmakers to address the issue also hit roadblocks earlier this year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When the safety of a child does not meet a legislative priority, that’s a head-scratcher for me,” said Republican Assemblymember Tom Lackey, who co-authored the first attempt to create the teacher database. “I think being sympathetic to the offender is on the wrong side of this issue.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both bills were modeled on a law the Legislature passed in 2025 mandating the creation of a database by next summer that will allow employers to search the names of school support staff, such as bus drivers, custodians and teaching assistants, who are under investigation by their schools or have substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The database for school support staff passed after months of tense negotiations. Under that system, employees’ names would be removed from the database if school investigations fail to substantiate claims of egregious misconduct. The bill passed despite opposition from unions, but the system that will be put in place is still being refined. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But that law explicitly does not apply to public school teachers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The system currently in place for public school educators is a patchwork with a fair number of gaps. School districts have long been required to report to the state any teacher who is fired or who resigns due to misconduct. But the state’s teacher licensing agency, which collects all of those reports, is restricted by state law in what information the agency can share while it investigates. The state’s disciplinary process typically takes one year, and teachers could be hired during the investigation period without schools knowing about the claims against them. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California’s publicly accessible online database of credentialed educators does indicate, with a red-flag icon, whether those public school teachers have been disciplined by the state. But it does not explain the reason for the sanction or provide a link to any documents. It is only after the state licensing agency recommends an educator be disciplined that prospective employers can request a summary of the case and the agency’s findings.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Without such details, California school administrators must rely on teachers themselves or their previous employers to provide key information. A law passed in 2024 requires teacher candidates to share their complete job history in education and mandates that school districts ask every previous employer whether a candidate had been reported to the credentialing agency for credible or substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct. If so, previous schools must share the relevant information. But that law keeps bad actors out of schools only if teachers and schools keep — and provide — accurate records.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For more than a year, California school administrators have lobbied lawmakers for a better way to protect students from those with a history of misconduct. “A database is needed to provide more complete, timely information so that schools can fulfill their responsibility to put trusted adults in positions that work with students,” said Dorothy Johnson, a lobbyist with the Association of California School Administrators, whose members include superintendents, principals and human resources officials. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093305\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260318-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-04-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Committee of Credentials, a subcommittee of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, meets in Sacramento, California, on March 18, 2026, as part of three days of deliberations. The subcommittee reviews cases involving alleged educator misconduct. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Under \u003ca href=\"https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB1381/id/3448036\">the original bill\u003c/a> authored by Muratsuchi and sponsored by the school administrators association, teachers would be added to a new database if their school districts have reported them to the state for misconduct. Before making job offers, schools would be required to check the database, accessible only to employers, for names of teachers with substantiated and credible complaints of egregious misconduct. Then, schools would be required to request records about misconduct from the districts that reported them. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi said his office was “immediately confronted with a lot of resistance,” with teachers unions raising concerns over fair treatment of the accused. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Brown, the lobbyist for the California Federation of Teachers, said the language in the measure was too broad. He said the union would not object to a database that identifies only teachers with substantiated complaints of egregious misconduct, but the bill also states that reports of “possible misconduct” would be included. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our opposition is really focused on making sure we’re looking at dangerous conduct that we can definitively say happened,” Brown said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>Muratsuchi, who pulled language for his bill directly from the previous effort by Republican Assemblymember Kate Sanchez, said his intent was for the database to focus on egregious misconduct reports that were substantiated and credible. Had he had more time, he said, he would have clarified the language through the legislative process and addressed the unions’ concerns. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But he introduced the bill with just weeks left in the legislative session. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Seth Bramble, a lobbyist for the California Teachers Association, the state’s most powerful teachers union, wrote in a statement that the proposed database would lead to “employment consequences for innocent teachers based on allegations later determined to be unfounded.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“CTA unequivocally supports protecting students, ensuring that credible misconduct information is shared with prospective school employers, and preventing individuals who commit egregious misconduct from moving from school to school,” Bramble wrote.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Trump administration singled out teachers unions as obstructions to legislative reforms to protect children when it announced a national crackdown in July on how school districts handle accusations of sexual misconduct by teachers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Teachers’ unions’ demonstrated commitment to shield their members from disciplinary action for gross misconduct cannot trump basic moral and legal responsibilities to students and families,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon wrote in the open letter to state school chiefs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090872/trump-administration-launches-crackdown-on-teacher-sexual-misconduct-following-kqed-propublica-investigation\">McMahon cited\u003c/a> KQED and ProPublica’s finding that California’s teacher licensing agency has not revoked the professional credentials of at least 67 educators who school districts determined had sexually harassed students or committed other sexual misconduct. At least 14 of those educators were rehired by other schools. That included Bay Area math teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.propublica.org/article/california-fired-teacher-sexual-harassment\">Jason Agan, who two schools hired\u003c/a> despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop. Agan was removed from the classroom the day after the story was published.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A substitute replaced him for the remainder of the school year.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Agan has denied any sexual motivation in touching students and said during his dismissal hearing at his first school that he touched students only to offer them support.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1653\" height=\"1103\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093306\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed.jpg 1653w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260324-ProPublica-CATeacherDiscipline-26-BL_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1653px) 100vw, 1653px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A photo of teacher Jason Agan in the Rodriguez High School yearbook from 2005 at the Fairfield Civic Center Library in Fairfield, California, on March 24, 2026. Two schools hired Agan despite having been fired after an independent panel determined he sexually harassed female students and massaged their shoulders after he’d been warned to stop. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Commission on Teacher Credentialing, California’s educator licensing agency, joined the unions in objecting to the bill to add teachers to the misconduct database. Jonathon Howard, the government relations manager for the credentialing agency, told Muratsuchi in a June 19 email obtained by KQED and ProPublica that complying with the proposed legislation would “require Commission staff to commit crimes.” Howard cited state laws restricting what information the teacher licensing agency is allowed to share. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi’s bill, Howard said, would expose the agency to “significant liability.” “The Commission does not oppose the goal of ensuring that credentialed educators with substantiated histories of serious misconduct cannot move undetected between schools,” Howard wrote. “However, achieving that goal requires legislation that is legally sound, operationally workable, and fair to the educators whose livelihoods and professional reputations are at stake.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Anita Fitzhugh, a spokesperson for the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, previously told KQED and ProPublica that the agency “stands ready to implement any additional public protections that the Legislature authorizes.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Within weeks of introducing the bill and following opposition, Muratsuchi scrapped the idea of adding teachers reported to the state for egregious misconduct to the database and instead amended the bill to clarify that the teacher licensing agency may penalize administrators who don’t thoroughly vet applicants. The school administrators association withdrew its sponsorship.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Muratsuchi, whose term expires in December, said he still supports more access to information about educators disciplined for serious misconduct. But with the legislative session ending Aug. 31, time is running out.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I tried,” Muratsuchi said. “I hope future Legislatures pick up the ball.” \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Dave Regan built his career fighting for the underdog. Now he’s taking on California’s billionaires. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Regan leads SEIU-UHW, a union representing more than 120,000 healthcare workers in the state. He’s known for taking on the state’s most powerful interests and using ballot initiatives as leverage to force negotiations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>His latest proposal is a controversial billionaire wealth tax on the November ballot that has split the labor community and Democratic party in California. The measure aims to offset looming MediCal cuts from President Trump’s so-called “big beautiful bill” by issuing a one-time, 5% tax on the assets of the state’s billionaires. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cbr>Marisa sits down with Regan to talk about his upbringing, how he got into organizing and the backroom negotiations with Gov. Gavin Newsom to pull the measure off the ballot that ultimately failed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Check out \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/newsletters/political-breakdown\">Political Breakdown’s weekly newsletter\u003c/a>, delivered straight to your inbox.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Dave Regan built his career fighting for the underdog. Now he’s taking on California’s billionaires. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Regan leads SEIU-UHW, a union representing more than 120,000 healthcare workers in the state. He’s known for taking on the state’s most powerful interests and using ballot initiatives as leverage to force negotiations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>His latest proposal is a controversial billionaire wealth tax on the November ballot that has split the labor community and Democratic party in California. The measure aims to offset looming MediCal cuts from President Trump’s so-called “big beautiful bill” by issuing a one-time, 5% tax on the assets of the state’s billionaires. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cbr>Marisa sits down with Regan to talk about his upbringing, how he got into organizing and the backroom negotiations with Gov. Gavin Newsom to pull the measure off the ballot that ultimately failed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Check out \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/newsletters/political-breakdown\">Political Breakdown’s weekly newsletter\u003c/a>, delivered straight to your inbox.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "san-jose-japantown-coalition-rallies-against-ice-facility-in-gilroy",
"title": "San José Japantown Coalition Rallies Against ICE Facility in Gilroy",
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"content": "\u003cp>A Japanese American-led coalition of residents, elected officials and faith leaders is speaking out against the Trump administration’s deadly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083908/6-people-have-died-in-california-ice-detention-centers-as-trump-deportations-soared\">immigration enforcement campaign\u003c/a> and opposing a planned Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090807/ice-will-pause-construction-on-controversial-south-bay-detention-facility\">detention facility\u003c/a> in Santa Clara County. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Members of the group said Wednesday the actions against immigrants and their families playing out in the nation today reflect the racist, white supremacist and unjust policies of the past, including when Japanese Americans were incarcerated based on their race during World War II. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When you see your government begin to sort human beings into categories of who deserves rights and who doesn’t, who gets due process and who doesn’t, you do not stay quiet,” Rev. John Oda of the Wesley United Methodist Church said at a rally in San José’s Japantown.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093195\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Advocates hold signs during a rally held in San José’s Japantown opposing a planned ICE facility in Santa Clara County on July 29, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>His uncle fought and died for the United States during the war, while his family was locked away at the Heart Mountain American concentration camp in Wyoming, Oda said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“You especially do not stay quiet when you have been taught via painful history exactly where that road leads,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Susan Hayase helped advance the movement for redress and reparations for Japanese Americans in the 1970s and 1980s, and co-founded San José Nikkei Resisters, a social justice organization. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“One of the things that former incarcerees like my parents’ generation and older told us is that they wanted to make sure that it would never happen to anybody else. And we took that as kind of a mission statement, kind of a command that was so important to us,” Hayase said in an interview.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That history is a driving force behind the group’s demand to stop the ICE office and detention facility being planned and built in South Santa Clara County, just outside Gilroy city limits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The county and Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office filed a lawsuit against ICE in June aiming to stop the center from advancing, saying it was illegally being developed in secret, skipping over environmental and intergovernmental cooperation laws and regulations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The federal agency has not offered much detail about its facility, saying earlier this year it was planning an office at the location and that it would support its work in the state and country. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges the facility at 7240 Holsclaw Road is planned to be nearly 19,000 square feet, and capable of holding roughly 150 people. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During the rally on Wednesday, Hayase said she feels “righteous anger” at what she views as the cruelty being inflicted at mass scale across the nation. Around 400,000 people have been detained by ICE since President Donald Trump began his second term, with widespread reports of poor conditions in detention facilities, more than 50 in-custody deaths and a growing number of fatal shootings in the street by federal agents, she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We hoped that by illuminating our history, we could inspire people to make sure that it never happened again. But today, unfortunately, it’s too late to just say never again. The thing we feared is happening again now,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12060760\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Attorney General Rob Bonta comments on the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning a federal judge’s limits on “roving patrols,” and enforcement stops by ICE agents in Southern California, during a news conference on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Damian Dovarganes/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The groups were joined by elected officials from local, county, state and federal offices, including Rep. Zoe Lofgren, State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, Assemblymembers Ash Kalra and Patrick Ahrens, Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong and San José City Councilmember Anthony Tordillos. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ICE is out of control. It needs to be rebuilt from top to bottom. We have dangerous, masked, armed men snatching people who’ve lived here for years and disappearing them off the streets,” Lofgren said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And if that detention center is opened…what it’s going to mean is that those masked, armed, dangerous agents can fan out across Northern California and bring their reign of terror to our communities. We cannot allow that to happen,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In recent court filings, ICE agreed to voluntarily hold off on further construction of the facility as part of a scheduling compromise with attorneys for Santa Clara County and the Attorney General’s office. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The county and the state are also asking a judge for a preliminary injunction to halt the project indefinitely while the long-term litigation plays out. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1308\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/02/GettyImages-1330932126-scaled-e1643861298742.jpg\" alt=\"A close shot of Zoe Lofgren, a middle-aged white woman with shoulder-length blond hair and glasses, wearing large earrings and a dark blue blazer, speaks into a microphone in front of an American flag.\" class=\"wp-image-11903832\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San José, questions witnesses during a hearing by the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol on July 27, 2021, at the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The federal court hearing addressing the preliminary injunction is set for Sept. 8. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lofgren expressed hope the lawsuit will prevail, but added that “we need to stand ready to do what else is necessary should those efforts fail.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hayase said she is very hopeful rallies and community-led actions will make real change, and she hopes others are inspired to take up such work, even if they haven’t been directly affected by the current policies. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Sometimes people get used to bad news. They become calloused. But I think deep down inside, nobody wants violations of human rights to be happening in the United States,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To make this system work, everybody has to participate,” she said. “You have to stand up for your own rights. But if you see somebody else’s rights being violated, you have to participate. And I think people aren’t used to that, but I think they can get used to it.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“When you see your government begin to sort human beings into categories of who deserves rights and who doesn’t, who gets due process and who doesn’t, you do not stay quiet,” Rev. John Oda of the Wesley United Methodist Church said at a rally in San José’s Japantown.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>His uncle fought and died for the United States during the war, while his family was locked away at the Heart Mountain American concentration camp in Wyoming, Oda said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“You especially do not stay quiet when you have been taught via painful history exactly where that road leads,” he said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Susan Hayase helped advance the movement for redress and reparations for Japanese Americans in the 1970s and 1980s, and co-founded San José Nikkei Resisters, a social justice organization. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That history is a driving force behind the group’s demand to stop the ICE office and detention facility being planned and built in South Santa Clara County, just outside Gilroy city limits. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The county and Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office filed a lawsuit against ICE in June aiming to stop the center from advancing, saying it was illegally being developed in secret, skipping over environmental and intergovernmental cooperation laws and regulations.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The federal agency has not offered much detail about its facility, saying earlier this year it was planning an office at the location and that it would support its work in the state and country. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges the facility at 7240 Holsclaw Road is planned to be nearly 19,000 square feet, and capable of holding roughly 150 people. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>During the rally on Wednesday, Hayase said she feels “righteous anger” at what she views as the cruelty being inflicted at mass scale across the nation. Around 400,000 people have been detained by ICE since President Donald Trump began his second term, with widespread reports of poor conditions in detention facilities, more than 50 in-custody deaths and a growing number of fatal shootings in the street by federal agents, she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We hoped that by illuminating our history, we could inspire people to make sure that it never happened again. But today, unfortunately, it’s too late to just say never again. The thing we feared is happening again now,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“ICE is out of control. It needs to be rebuilt from top to bottom. We have dangerous, masked, armed men snatching people who’ve lived here for years and disappearing them off the streets,” Lofgren said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“And if that detention center is opened…what it’s going to mean is that those masked, armed, dangerous agents can fan out across Northern California and bring their reign of terror to our communities. We cannot allow that to happen,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"title": "San José Japantown Coalition Rallies Against ICE Facility in Gilroy | KQED",
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"headline": "San José Japantown Coalition Rallies Against ICE Facility in Gilroy",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A Japanese American-led coalition of residents, elected officials and faith leaders is speaking out against the Trump administration’s deadly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083908/6-people-have-died-in-california-ice-detention-centers-as-trump-deportations-soared\">immigration enforcement campaign\u003c/a> and opposing a planned Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090807/ice-will-pause-construction-on-controversial-south-bay-detention-facility\">detention facility\u003c/a> in Santa Clara County. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Members of the group said Wednesday the actions against immigrants and their families playing out in the nation today reflect the racist, white supremacist and unjust policies of the past, including when Japanese Americans were incarcerated based on their race during World War II. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When you see your government begin to sort human beings into categories of who deserves rights and who doesn’t, who gets due process and who doesn’t, you do not stay quiet,” Rev. John Oda of the Wesley United Methodist Church said at a rally in San José’s Japantown.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093195\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260729-SJICERALLY-JG-2_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Advocates hold signs during a rally held in San José’s Japantown opposing a planned ICE facility in Santa Clara County on July 29, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>His uncle fought and died for the United States during the war, while his family was locked away at the Heart Mountain American concentration camp in Wyoming, Oda said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“You especially do not stay quiet when you have been taught via painful history exactly where that road leads,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Susan Hayase helped advance the movement for redress and reparations for Japanese Americans in the 1970s and 1980s, and co-founded San José Nikkei Resisters, a social justice organization. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“One of the things that former incarcerees like my parents’ generation and older told us is that they wanted to make sure that it would never happen to anybody else. And we took that as kind of a mission statement, kind of a command that was so important to us,” Hayase said in an interview.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That history is a driving force behind the group’s demand to stop the ICE office and detention facility being planned and built in South Santa Clara County, just outside Gilroy city limits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The county and Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office filed a lawsuit against ICE in June aiming to stop the center from advancing, saying it was illegally being developed in secret, skipping over environmental and intergovernmental cooperation laws and regulations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The federal agency has not offered much detail about its facility, saying earlier this year it was planning an office at the location and that it would support its work in the state and country. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges the facility at 7240 Holsclaw Road is planned to be nearly 19,000 square feet, and capable of holding roughly 150 people. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During the rally on Wednesday, Hayase said she feels “righteous anger” at what she views as the cruelty being inflicted at mass scale across the nation. Around 400,000 people have been detained by ICE since President Donald Trump began his second term, with widespread reports of poor conditions in detention facilities, more than 50 in-custody deaths and a growing number of fatal shootings in the street by federal agents, she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We hoped that by illuminating our history, we could inspire people to make sure that it never happened again. But today, unfortunately, it’s too late to just say never again. The thing we feared is happening again now,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12060760\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/RobBontaAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Attorney General Rob Bonta comments on the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning a federal judge’s limits on “roving patrols,” and enforcement stops by ICE agents in Southern California, during a news conference on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Damian Dovarganes/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The groups were joined by elected officials from local, county, state and federal offices, including Rep. Zoe Lofgren, State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, Assemblymembers Ash Kalra and Patrick Ahrens, Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong and San José City Councilmember Anthony Tordillos. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ICE is out of control. It needs to be rebuilt from top to bottom. We have dangerous, masked, armed men snatching people who’ve lived here for years and disappearing them off the streets,” Lofgren said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And if that detention center is opened…what it’s going to mean is that those masked, armed, dangerous agents can fan out across Northern California and bring their reign of terror to our communities. We cannot allow that to happen,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In recent court filings, ICE agreed to voluntarily hold off on further construction of the facility as part of a scheduling compromise with attorneys for Santa Clara County and the Attorney General’s office. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The county and the state are also asking a judge for a preliminary injunction to halt the project indefinitely while the long-term litigation plays out. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1308\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/02/GettyImages-1330932126-scaled-e1643861298742.jpg\" alt=\"A close shot of Zoe Lofgren, a middle-aged white woman with shoulder-length blond hair and glasses, wearing large earrings and a dark blue blazer, speaks into a microphone in front of an American flag.\" class=\"wp-image-11903832\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San José, questions witnesses during a hearing by the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol on July 27, 2021, at the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The federal court hearing addressing the preliminary injunction is set for Sept. 8. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lofgren expressed hope the lawsuit will prevail, but added that “we need to stand ready to do what else is necessary should those efforts fail.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hayase said she is very hopeful rallies and community-led actions will make real change, and she hopes others are inspired to take up such work, even if they haven’t been directly affected by the current policies. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Sometimes people get used to bad news. They become calloused. But I think deep down inside, nobody wants violations of human rights to be happening in the United States,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To make this system work, everybody has to participate,” she said. “You have to stand up for your own rights. But if you see somebody else’s rights being violated, you have to participate. And I think people aren’t used to that, but I think they can get used to it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "these-peers-provided-alternative-911-responders-san-francisco-is-removing-them",
"title": "These Peers Provided Alternative 911 Responders. San Francisco Is Removing Them",
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"headTitle": "These Peers Provided Alternative 911 Responders. San Francisco Is Removing Them | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>After losing her job because of substance abuse, Chantel Hernandez-Wood was living \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994288/you-mean-something-to-someone-overcoming-homelessness-and-addiction-this-san-francisco-woman-now-helps-others-heal\">on the streets of San Francisco\u003c/a> when she saw a red van parked nearby one day in 2022. It was the city’s former Street Overdose Response Team, and she flagged them down for help. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Equipped with a peer counselor trained to connect with people in crisis, the crew drove her to a recovery center, where she received medication to assist with alcohol withdrawal and entered a 90-day recovery program. While there, she decided she wanted to do the same kind of work as the people who came to her rescue. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It felt like I meant something to someone. They went above and beyond to help get me off the streets,” Hernandez-Wood told KQED. “I thought, ‘I’d love to do that, I want to give back.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After successfully finishing the recovery program, Hernandez-Wood completed training to become a certified peer support specialist, learning techniques to engage with vulnerable populations and navigate social services. She started working at the nonprofit Glide, helping people who struggle with drug use, went on to work on the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994288/you-mean-something-to-someone-overcoming-homelessness-and-addiction-this-san-francisco-woman-now-helps-others-heal\">Street Overdose Response Team\u003c/a>, and later stepped into her current role as a peer responder on the Street Crisis Response Team. Peer responders currently pair with fire department paramedics to respond to some calls together. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1.jpg\" alt=\"A middle-aged woman stands in front of a red van labeled 'Street Overdose Response Team'\" class=\"wp-image-12014173\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Counselor Chantel Hernandez-Wood, member of the Street Overdose Response Team, gets supplies from her van after speaking with two people sitting on the street in the South of Market neighborhood in San Francisco on Sept. 3, 2024. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was so surreal, because I was working on the same type of team that helped me when I needed help the most,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But now, San Francisco is quietly shifting its emergency response networks and the roles that peers with lived experience have within them. The fire department is planning to remove peer specialists from its 911 response this summer, setting off alarms for peer advocates who say the decision is a regressive step in the city’s approach to mental and behavioral health emergencies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s just an incredible disservice to the community,” Hernandez-Wood said. “I feel blindsided.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Fire department officials said the move to pull peers off of the Street Crisis Response Team came after “careful consideration,” and cited challenges with scheduling that made picking up the peer responders before calls difficult. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This decision was not made lightly and reflects the evolving needs and direction of crisis response within the larger 911 system,” a spokesperson for the fire department said in an email. “We believe that by working together within the Street Response framework, SFFD can ensure those we serve continue to receive the appropriate response.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Widespread protests against police brutality in 2020 sparked national discussions around how first responders can better serve people experiencing a mental health crisis, overdose or other behavioral health issues. In the wake of those conversations, the city did not decrease its police budget, but instead created new teams to respond to people in crisis, including the Street Crisis Response Team.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The peer responders are not fire department employees, but are contracted through the nonprofit RAMS, which the Department of Public Health administers. Others are specialists with the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team. The Department of Public Health declined to comment on the staffing changes, saying the Street Crisis Response Team is under the fire department’s purview. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Peer responders with the Street Crisis Response Team help address issues ranging from a street-level overdose to a domestic dispute in a penthouse, offering support for de-escalation, navigating social services and sometimes bringing lived experiences to a crew of medical and safety professionals. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Over the years, I’ve noticed that a lot of people will look to their peers for guidance or answers because we’re not in uniform,” Hernandez-Wood said. “A lot of unhoused folks that have substance use disorders, they don’t want to talk to anybody in uniform, they just feel more comfortable and less intimidated.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco has served as a model for other cities and jurisdictions looking to improve the way that they address complicated 911 emergency calls. A 2024 \u003ca href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58a33e881b631bc60d4f8b31/t/668d922525a2bc711295fe86/1720554079016/San+Francisco%27s+Public+Safety+System\">report\u003c/a> by the Policing Project at New York University found that the city’s programs “saved law enforcement resources, freeing up the police for other more pressing work.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092840\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A San Francisco fire engine on March 25, 2026. (Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the novel approach presented challenges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the report, “911 dispatchers are stretched thin and struggle with the scripted protocols they must use to assess call eligibility, in particular because those protocols may not always resolve the calls they receive. There still is some confusion among frontline workers about responsibilities of each at the scene of an incident. And many community members and some call takers are disappointed that alternative responses are not solving complex social problems.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Fire Department has meanwhile been developing its Community Paramedicine team, whose members have training in trauma-informed care and resource navigation, to more appropriately respond to people struggling with substance use, mental health crises, homelessness and other behavioral health challenges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The community paramedics have more training in emergency medicine, and they arrive in uniform and steel-toed boots, unlike the peer specialists, who work in regular street clothes, a small but important detail that can signal a more relatable helper for some 911 callers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The last day on the Street Crisis Response rigs for peer responders, who say their lived experience is central to their expertise, is Aug. 14.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Amelia Harmon, who works with peer responders on the Street Crisis Response Team, has been advocating to keep the positions within the fire department at public health and law enforcement commission meetings, as well as urging city supervisors to step in to reverse the decision. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said it’s especially urgent after behavioral health clinicians were removed from the Street Crisis Response Team in 2023. Pulling peer responders off of 911 responses is further “chipping away” at the work that she and others have spent the last five years building, she said. \u003cbr>\u003cbr>“Removing peers doesn’t cut costs, it moves costs to the most expensive part of the system,” said Harmon, a peer supervisor with RAMS. “Why would we forfeit high-quality care that has mechanisms for federal and state reimbursement in this budget climate?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The decision to remove peer specialists from 911 responses is also drawing wider criticism from other workers in the city’s homelessness response system and public safety. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I have personal experience with crisis, and I would rather speak to a non-uniformed peer,” said Joshua Cantero, a case manager at a San Francisco homeless shelter, in a letter to the Board of Supervisors. A peer counselor, Cantero wrote, “makes the clients feel more comfortable and assists with getting them into shelters and making them feel safe.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what will happen next to the peer responders. They have not received layoff notices and could be reassigned to different street teams. Fire department officials said they will continue to refer people to experts with lived experience when it’s appropriate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Harmon is desperate to keep the peer responders on 911 calls, saying she’s seen firsthand how their approach can be both life-saving and ease the burden for other first responders. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Why would you cut out the heart and soul of the program,” she said, “and risk burning out your own people?”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Equipped with a peer counselor trained to connect with people in crisis, the crew drove her to a recovery center, where she received medication to assist with alcohol withdrawal and entered a 90-day recovery program. While there, she decided she wanted to do the same kind of work as the people who came to her rescue. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Equipped with a peer counselor trained to connect with people in crisis, the crew drove her to a recovery center, where she received medication to assist with alcohol withdrawal and entered a 90-day recovery program. While there, she decided she wanted to do the same kind of work as the people who came to her rescue. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It felt like I meant something to someone. They went above and beyond to help get me off the streets,” Hernandez-Wood told KQED. “I thought, ‘I’d love to do that, I want to give back.’”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>After successfully finishing the recovery program, Hernandez-Wood completed training to become a certified peer support specialist, learning techniques to engage with vulnerable populations and navigate social services. She started working at the nonprofit Glide, helping people who struggle with drug use, went on to work on the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994288/you-mean-something-to-someone-overcoming-homelessness-and-addiction-this-san-francisco-woman-now-helps-others-heal\">Street Overdose Response Team\u003c/a>, and later stepped into her current role as a peer responder on the Street Crisis Response Team. Peer responders currently pair with fire department paramedics to respond to some calls together. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>After successfully finishing the recovery program, Hernandez-Wood completed training to become a certified peer support specialist, learning techniques to engage with vulnerable populations and navigate social services. She started working at the nonprofit Glide, helping people who struggle with drug use, went on to work on the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994288/you-mean-something-to-someone-overcoming-homelessness-and-addiction-this-san-francisco-woman-now-helps-others-heal\">Street Overdose Response Team\u003c/a>, and later stepped into her current role as a peer responder on the Street Crisis Response Team. Peer responders currently pair with fire department paramedics to respond to some calls together. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1.jpg\" alt=\"A middle-aged woman stands in front of a red van labeled 'Street Overdose Response Team'\" class=\"wp-image-12014173\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Counselor Chantel Hernandez-Wood, member of the Street Overdose Response Team, gets supplies from her van after speaking with two people sitting on the street in the South of Market neighborhood in San Francisco on Sept. 3, 2024.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It was so surreal, because I was working on the same type of team that helped me when I needed help the most,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But now, San Francisco is quietly shifting its emergency response networks and the roles that peers with lived experience have within them. The fire department is planning to remove peer specialists from its 911 response this summer, setting off alarms for peer advocates who say the decision is a regressive step in the city’s approach to mental and behavioral health emergencies.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But now, San Francisco is quietly shifting its emergency response networks and the roles that peers with lived experience have within them. The fire department is planning to remove peer specialists from its 911 response this summer, setting off alarms for peer advocates who say the decision is a regressive step in the city’s approach to mental and behavioral health emergencies.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s just an incredible disservice to the community,” Hernandez-Wood said. “I feel blindsided.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s just an incredible disservice to the community,” Hernandez-Wood said. “I feel blindsided.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Fire department officials said the move to pull peers off of the Street Crisis Response Team came after “careful consideration,” and cited challenges with scheduling that made picking up the peer responders before calls difficult. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Fire department officials said the move to pull peers off of the Street Crisis Response Team came after “careful consideration,” and cited challenges with scheduling that made picking up the peer responders before calls difficult. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This decision was not made lightly and reflects the evolving needs and direction of crisis response within the larger 911 system,” a spokesperson for the fire department said in an email. “We believe that by working together within the Street Response framework, SFFD can ensure those we serve continue to receive the appropriate response.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“This decision was not made lightly and reflects the evolving needs and direction of crisis response within the larger 911 system,” a spokesperson for the fire department said in an email. “We believe that by working together within the Street Response framework, SFFD can ensure those we serve continue to receive the appropriate response.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Widespread protests against police brutality in 2020 sparked national discussions around how first responders can better serve people experiencing a mental health crisis, overdose or other behavioral health issues. In the wake of those conversations, the city did not decrease its police budget, but instead created new teams to respond to people in crisis, including the Street Crisis Response Team.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Widespread protests against police brutality in 2020 sparked national discussions around how first responders can better serve people experiencing a mental health crisis, overdose or other behavioral health issues. In the wake of those conversations, the city did not decrease its police budget, but instead created new teams to respond to people in crisis, including the Street Crisis Response Team.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The peer responders are not fire department employees, but are contracted through the nonprofit RAMS, which the Department of Public Health administers. Others are specialists with the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team. The Department of Public Health declined to comment on the staffing changes, saying the Street Crisis Response Team is under the fire department’s purview. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The peer responders are not fire department employees, but are contracted through the nonprofit RAMS, which the Department of Public Health administers. Others are specialists with the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team. The Department of Public Health declined to comment on the staffing changes, saying the Street Crisis Response Team is under the fire department’s purview. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Peer responders with the Street Crisis Response Team help address issues ranging from a street-level overdose to a domestic dispute in a penthouse, offering support for de-escalation, navigating social services and sometimes bringing lived experiences to a crew of medical and safety professionals. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Peer responders with the Street Crisis Response Team help address issues ranging from a street-level overdose to a domestic dispute in a penthouse, offering support for de-escalation, navigating social services and sometimes bringing lived experiences to a crew of medical and safety professionals. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Over the years, I’ve noticed that a lot of people will look to their peers for guidance or answers because we’re not in uniform,” Hernandez-Wood said. “A lot of unhoused folks that have substance use disorders, they don’t want to talk to anybody in uniform, they just feel more comfortable and less intimidated.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Over the years, I’ve noticed that a lot of people will look to their peers for guidance or answers because we’re not in uniform,” Hernandez-Wood said. “A lot of unhoused folks that have substance use disorders, they don’t want to talk to anybody in uniform, they just feel more comfortable and less intimidated.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco has served as a model for other cities and jurisdictions looking to improve the way that they address complicated 911 emergency calls. A 2024 \u003ca href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58a33e881b631bc60d4f8b31/t/668d922525a2bc711295fe86/1720554079016/San+Francisco%27s+Public+Safety+System\">report\u003c/a> by the Policing Project at New York University found that the city’s programs “saved law enforcement resources, freeing up the police for other more pressing work.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco has served as a model for other cities and jurisdictions looking to improve the way that they address complicated 911 emergency calls. A 2024 \u003ca href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58a33e881b631bc60d4f8b31/t/668d922525a2bc711295fe86/1720554079016/San+Francisco%27s+Public+Safety+System\">report\u003c/a> by the Policing Project at New York University found that the city’s programs “saved law enforcement resources, freeing up the police for other more pressing work.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092840\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A San Francisco fire engine on March 25, 2026. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092840\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A San Francisco fire engine on March 25, 2026. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But the novel approach presented challenges. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>According to the report, “911 dispatchers are stretched thin and struggle with the scripted protocols they must use to assess call eligibility, in particular because those protocols may not always resolve the calls they receive. There still is some confusion among frontline workers about responsibilities of each at the scene of an incident. And many community members and some call takers are disappointed that alternative responses are not solving complex social problems.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>According to the report, “911 dispatchers are stretched thin and struggle with the scripted protocols they must use to assess call eligibility, in particular because those protocols may not always resolve the calls they receive. There still is some confusion among frontline workers about responsibilities of each at the scene of an incident. And many community members and some call takers are disappointed that alternative responses are not solving complex social problems.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Fire Department has meanwhile been developing its Community Paramedicine team, whose members have training in trauma-informed care and resource navigation, to more appropriately respond to people struggling with substance use, mental health crises, homelessness and other behavioral health challenges. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Fire Department has meanwhile been developing its Community Paramedicine team, whose members have training in trauma-informed care and resource navigation, to more appropriately respond to people struggling with substance use, mental health crises, homelessness and other behavioral health challenges. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The community paramedics have more training in emergency medicine, and they arrive in uniform and steel-toed boots, unlike the peer specialists, who work in regular street clothes, a small but important detail that can signal a more relatable helper for some 911 callers.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The community paramedics have more training in emergency medicine, and they arrive in uniform and steel-toed boots, unlike the peer specialists, who work in regular street clothes, a small but important detail that can signal a more relatable helper for some 911 callers.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The last day on the Street Crisis Response rigs for peer responders, who say their lived experience is central to their expertise, is Aug. 14.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The last day on the Street Crisis Response rigs for peer responders, who say their lived experience is central to their expertise, is Aug. 14.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Amelia Harmon, who works with peer responders on the Street Crisis Response Team, has been advocating to keep the positions within the fire department at public health and law enforcement commission meetings, as well as urging city supervisors to step in to reverse the decision. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Amelia Harmon, who works with peer responders on the Street Crisis Response Team, has been advocating to keep the positions within the fire department at public health and law enforcement commission meetings, as well as urging city supervisors to step in to reverse the decision. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said it’s especially urgent after behavioral health clinicians were removed from the Street Crisis Response Team in 2023. Pulling peer responders off of 911 responses is further “chipping away” at the work that she and others have spent the last five years building, she said. \u003cbr>\u003cbr>“Removing peers doesn’t cut costs, it moves costs to the most expensive part of the system,” said Harmon, a peer supervisor with RAMS. “Why would we forfeit high-quality care that has mechanisms for federal and state reimbursement in this budget climate?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She said it’s especially urgent after behavioral health clinicians were removed from the Street Crisis Response Team in 2023. Pulling peer responders off of 911 responses is further “chipping away” at the work that she and others have spent the last five years building, she said. \u003cbr>\u003cbr>“Removing peers doesn’t cut costs, it moves costs to the most expensive part of the system,” said Harmon, a peer supervisor with RAMS. “Why would we forfeit high-quality care that has mechanisms for federal and state reimbursement in this budget climate?”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The decision to remove peer specialists from 911 responses is also drawing wider criticism from other workers in the city’s homelessness response system and public safety. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The decision to remove peer specialists from 911 responses is also drawing wider criticism from other workers in the city’s homelessness response system and public safety. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I have personal experience with crisis, and I would rather speak to a non-uniformed peer,” said Joshua Cantero, a case manager at a San Francisco homeless shelter, in a letter to the Board of Supervisors. A peer counselor, Cantero wrote, “makes the clients feel more comfortable and assists with getting them into shelters and making them feel safe.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I have personal experience with crisis, and I would rather speak to a non-uniformed peer,” said Joshua Cantero, a case manager at a San Francisco homeless shelter, in a letter to the Board of Supervisors. A peer counselor, Cantero wrote, “makes the clients feel more comfortable and assists with getting them into shelters and making them feel safe.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what will happen next to the peer responders. They have not received layoff notices and could be reassigned to different street teams. Fire department officials said they will continue to refer people to experts with lived experience when it’s appropriate. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what will happen next to the peer responders. They have not received layoff notices and could be reassigned to different street teams. Fire department officials said they will continue to refer people to experts with lived experience when it’s appropriate. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Harmon is desperate to keep the peer responders on 911 calls, saying she’s seen firsthand how their approach can be both life-saving and ease the burden for other first responders. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Harmon is desperate to keep the peer responders on 911 calls, saying she’s seen firsthand how their approach can be both life-saving and ease the burden for other first responders. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Why would you cut out the heart and soul of the program,” she said, “and risk burning out your own people?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Why would you cut out the heart and soul of the program,” she said, “and risk burning out your own people?”\u003c/p>\n"
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>After losing her job because of substance abuse, Chantel Hernandez-Wood was living \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994288/you-mean-something-to-someone-overcoming-homelessness-and-addiction-this-san-francisco-woman-now-helps-others-heal\">on the streets of San Francisco\u003c/a> when she saw a red van parked nearby one day in 2022. It was the city’s former Street Overdose Response Team, and she flagged them down for help. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Equipped with a peer counselor trained to connect with people in crisis, the crew drove her to a recovery center, where she received medication to assist with alcohol withdrawal and entered a 90-day recovery program. While there, she decided she wanted to do the same kind of work as the people who came to her rescue. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It felt like I meant something to someone. They went above and beyond to help get me off the streets,” Hernandez-Wood told KQED. “I thought, ‘I’d love to do that, I want to give back.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After successfully finishing the recovery program, Hernandez-Wood completed training to become a certified peer support specialist, learning techniques to engage with vulnerable populations and navigate social services. She started working at the nonprofit Glide, helping people who struggle with drug use, went on to work on the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994288/you-mean-something-to-someone-overcoming-homelessness-and-addiction-this-san-francisco-woman-now-helps-others-heal\">Street Overdose Response Team\u003c/a>, and later stepped into her current role as a peer responder on the Street Crisis Response Team. Peer responders currently pair with fire department paramedics to respond to some calls together. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1.jpg\" alt=\"A middle-aged woman stands in front of a red van labeled 'Street Overdose Response Team'\" class=\"wp-image-12014173\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/240903-OverdoseResponse-48-BL_qed-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Counselor Chantel Hernandez-Wood, member of the Street Overdose Response Team, gets supplies from her van after speaking with two people sitting on the street in the South of Market neighborhood in San Francisco on Sept. 3, 2024. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was so surreal, because I was working on the same type of team that helped me when I needed help the most,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But now, San Francisco is quietly shifting its emergency response networks and the roles that peers with lived experience have within them. The fire department is planning to remove peer specialists from its 911 response this summer, setting off alarms for peer advocates who say the decision is a regressive step in the city’s approach to mental and behavioral health emergencies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s just an incredible disservice to the community,” Hernandez-Wood said. “I feel blindsided.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Fire department officials said the move to pull peers off of the Street Crisis Response Team came after “careful consideration,” and cited challenges with scheduling that made picking up the peer responders before calls difficult. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This decision was not made lightly and reflects the evolving needs and direction of crisis response within the larger 911 system,” a spokesperson for the fire department said in an email. “We believe that by working together within the Street Response framework, SFFD can ensure those we serve continue to receive the appropriate response.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Widespread protests against police brutality in 2020 sparked national discussions around how first responders can better serve people experiencing a mental health crisis, overdose or other behavioral health issues. In the wake of those conversations, the city did not decrease its police budget, but instead created new teams to respond to people in crisis, including the Street Crisis Response Team.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The peer responders are not fire department employees, but are contracted through the nonprofit RAMS, which the Department of Public Health administers. Others are specialists with the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team. The Department of Public Health declined to comment on the staffing changes, saying the Street Crisis Response Team is under the fire department’s purview. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Peer responders with the Street Crisis Response Team help address issues ranging from a street-level overdose to a domestic dispute in a penthouse, offering support for de-escalation, navigating social services and sometimes bringing lived experiences to a crew of medical and safety professionals. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Over the years, I’ve noticed that a lot of people will look to their peers for guidance or answers because we’re not in uniform,” Hernandez-Wood said. “A lot of unhoused folks that have substance use disorders, they don’t want to talk to anybody in uniform, they just feel more comfortable and less intimidated.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco has served as a model for other cities and jurisdictions looking to improve the way that they address complicated 911 emergency calls. A 2024 \u003ca href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58a33e881b631bc60d4f8b31/t/668d922525a2bc711295fe86/1720554079016/San+Francisco%27s+Public+Safety+System\">report\u003c/a> by the Policing Project at New York University found that the city’s programs “saved law enforcement resources, freeing up the police for other more pressing work.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092840\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/San-Francisco-Fire-Dept-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A San Francisco fire engine on March 25, 2026. (Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the novel approach presented challenges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the report, “911 dispatchers are stretched thin and struggle with the scripted protocols they must use to assess call eligibility, in particular because those protocols may not always resolve the calls they receive. There still is some confusion among frontline workers about responsibilities of each at the scene of an incident. And many community members and some call takers are disappointed that alternative responses are not solving complex social problems.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Fire Department has meanwhile been developing its Community Paramedicine team, whose members have training in trauma-informed care and resource navigation, to more appropriately respond to people struggling with substance use, mental health crises, homelessness and other behavioral health challenges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The community paramedics have more training in emergency medicine, and they arrive in uniform and steel-toed boots, unlike the peer specialists, who work in regular street clothes, a small but important detail that can signal a more relatable helper for some 911 callers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The last day on the Street Crisis Response rigs for peer responders, who say their lived experience is central to their expertise, is Aug. 14.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Amelia Harmon, who works with peer responders on the Street Crisis Response Team, has been advocating to keep the positions within the fire department at public health and law enforcement commission meetings, as well as urging city supervisors to step in to reverse the decision. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said it’s especially urgent after behavioral health clinicians were removed from the Street Crisis Response Team in 2023. Pulling peer responders off of 911 responses is further “chipping away” at the work that she and others have spent the last five years building, she said. \u003cbr>\u003cbr>“Removing peers doesn’t cut costs, it moves costs to the most expensive part of the system,” said Harmon, a peer supervisor with RAMS. “Why would we forfeit high-quality care that has mechanisms for federal and state reimbursement in this budget climate?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The decision to remove peer specialists from 911 responses is also drawing wider criticism from other workers in the city’s homelessness response system and public safety. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I have personal experience with crisis, and I would rather speak to a non-uniformed peer,” said Joshua Cantero, a case manager at a San Francisco homeless shelter, in a letter to the Board of Supervisors. A peer counselor, Cantero wrote, “makes the clients feel more comfortable and assists with getting them into shelters and making them feel safe.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what will happen next to the peer responders. They have not received layoff notices and could be reassigned to different street teams. Fire department officials said they will continue to refer people to experts with lived experience when it’s appropriate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Harmon is desperate to keep the peer responders on 911 calls, saying she’s seen firsthand how their approach can be both life-saving and ease the burden for other first responders. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Why would you cut out the heart and soul of the program,” she said, “and risk burning out your own people?”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "voter-suppression-didnt-start-with-trump-a-historian-tracks-its-origins",
"title": "Voter Suppression Didn’t Start with Trump. A Historian Tracks Its Origins",
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"headTitle": "Voter Suppression Didn’t Start with Trump. A Historian Tracks Its Origins | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>This week, President Donald Trump asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow him to implement an executive order aimed at making it much harder to vote by mail. The order would direct the Department of Homeland Security to create “state citizenship lists” of eligible voters and require the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s part of the president’s ongoing attacks on the election system. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Political Breakdown has been examining election integrity in America over the past few weeks, and today they revisit the first episode in that series. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Host Marisa Lagos talks with historian Carol Anderson, a professor of African American Studies at Emory University and author of “\u003ca href=\"https://www.professorcarolanderson.org/one-person-no-vote\">One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression is Destroying our Democracy\u003c/a>.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said the debate over who gets to vote has been centered, since our founding, on the question of “who is worthy” of voting.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Anderson said the first big backlash came after the Civil War, when Congress passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867, “which basically said that Black men could vote.” And they did come out to vote: That law led to 33 Black men being elected to the state legislature in Georgia a year later — then being expelled, illegally, by white lawmakers. The resulting protests ended in a massacre.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“You had this massive backlash to Black men voting because there was this sense that they were not real Americans. They weren’t worthy of citizenship,” Anderson said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Understanding that the Reconstruction Act wasn’t enough, Congress passed the 15th Amendment in 1869. Clocking in at 46 words long, it decreed: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Anderson said the intention was good, but the law ultimately ushered in the Jim Crow era as once again states worked to circumvent the federal law. Sometimes it was through raw violence and intimidation of Black voters — but often, Anderson said, it was also through what she called “bureaucratic violence.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The states figured out, OK, we can’t say we don’t want Black folks to vote,” Anderson said, so they instead crafted laws and policies that never mentioned race but had the effect of disenfranchising Black voters.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Those laws included literacy and constitutional tests, which Black voters couldn’t pass because they’d been denied education, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses that exempted men who had the right to vote before 1867 from these various tests and taxes — so that poor and illiterate white men wouldn’t be barred from voting.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They figured out how to make it sound reasonable, how to make it sound like a protection of democracy, to make a sound like they’re going for election integrity,” Anderson said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>These laws were often upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court under the guise that they didn’t mention race, Anderson said. The blueprint was the Mississippi Plan of 1890, which pioneered many of those Jim Crow voter suppression laws and was upheld by the court because its language was “colorblind.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When it passed, Anderson said, around 190,000 Black men were registered to vote in Mississippi. Two years later, that number had dropped to 8,600.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That is the power of the Mississippi Plan, massive disfranchisement,” she said. “They knew exactly what they were doing.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Anderson said things didn’t really start changing until the Voting Rights Act of 1965, though there have been efforts in the subsequent decades to limit voting access. That includes the 1993 Motor Voter Act, which made voter registration easier but also included a provision requiring states to clean up their voter rolls. Anderson said it resulted in tens of thousands of eligible voters being scrubbed from the rolls in mostly Southern states — and unable to vote in key races, including the 2000 presidential contest.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And who are those people? We know who they are by statistics, by research. They’re overwhelmingly young people, poor people and minorities,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That brings us to the modern era, and Trump’s attacks on the 2020 elections. Stay tuned for more episodes on election integrity in America. \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This week, President Donald Trump asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow him to implement an executive order aimed at making it much harder to vote by mail. The order would direct the Department of Homeland Security to create “state citizenship lists” of eligible voters and require the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Host Marisa Lagos talks with historian Carol Anderson, a professor of African American Studies at Emory University and author of “\u003ca href=\"https://www.professorcarolanderson.org/one-person-no-vote\">One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression is Destroying our Democracy\u003c/a>.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said the debate over who gets to vote has been centered, since our founding, on the question of “who is worthy” of voting.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Anderson said the first big backlash came after the Civil War, when Congress passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867, “which basically said that Black men could vote.” And they did come out to vote: That law led to 33 Black men being elected to the state legislature in Georgia a year later — then being expelled, illegally, by white lawmakers. The resulting protests ended in a massacre.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Anderson said the first big backlash came after the Civil War, when Congress passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867, “which basically said that Black men could vote.” And they did come out to vote: That law led to 33 Black men being elected to the state legislature in Georgia a year later — then being expelled, illegally, by white lawmakers. The resulting protests ended in a massacre.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“You had this massive backlash to Black men voting because there was this sense that they were not real Americans. They weren’t worthy of citizenship,” Anderson said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Understanding that the Reconstruction Act wasn’t enough, Congress passed the 15th Amendment in 1869. Clocking in at 46 words long, it decreed: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Anderson said the intention was good, but the law ultimately ushered in the Jim Crow era as once again states worked to circumvent the federal law. Sometimes it was through raw violence and intimidation of Black voters — but often, Anderson said, it was also through what she called “bureaucratic violence.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The states figured out, OK, we can’t say we don’t want Black folks to vote,” Anderson said, so they instead crafted laws and policies that never mentioned race but had the effect of disenfranchising Black voters.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Those laws included literacy and constitutional tests, which Black voters couldn’t pass because they’d been denied education, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses that exempted men who had the right to vote before 1867 from these various tests and taxes — so that poor and illiterate white men wouldn’t be barred from voting.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“They figured out how to make it sound reasonable, how to make it sound like a protection of democracy, to make a sound like they’re going for election integrity,” Anderson said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>These laws were often upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court under the guise that they didn’t mention race, Anderson said. The blueprint was the Mississippi Plan of 1890, which pioneered many of those Jim Crow voter suppression laws and was upheld by the court because its language was “colorblind.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>When it passed, Anderson said, around 190,000 Black men were registered to vote in Mississippi. Two years later, that number had dropped to 8,600.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“That is the power of the Mississippi Plan, massive disfranchisement,” she said. “They knew exactly what they were doing.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Anderson said things didn’t really start changing until the Voting Rights Act of 1965, though there have been efforts in the subsequent decades to limit voting access. That includes the 1993 Motor Voter Act, which made voter registration easier but also included a provision requiring states to clean up their voter rolls. Anderson said it resulted in tens of thousands of eligible voters being scrubbed from the rolls in mostly Southern states — and unable to vote in key races, including the 2000 presidential contest.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Historian Carol Anderson walks us through the history of voter suppression in the U.S. to put this moment in context and illustrate how the same playbook is being used now. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>This week, President Donald Trump asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow him to implement an executive order aimed at making it much harder to vote by mail. The order would direct the Department of Homeland Security to create “state citizenship lists” of eligible voters and require the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s part of the president’s ongoing attacks on the election system. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Political Breakdown has been examining election integrity in America over the past few weeks, and today they revisit the first episode in that series. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Host Marisa Lagos talks with historian Carol Anderson, a professor of African American Studies at Emory University and author of “\u003ca href=\"https://www.professorcarolanderson.org/one-person-no-vote\">One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression is Destroying our Democracy\u003c/a>.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said the debate over who gets to vote has been centered, since our founding, on the question of “who is worthy” of voting.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Anderson said the first big backlash came after the Civil War, when Congress passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867, “which basically said that Black men could vote.” And they did come out to vote: That law led to 33 Black men being elected to the state legislature in Georgia a year later — then being expelled, illegally, by white lawmakers. The resulting protests ended in a massacre.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“You had this massive backlash to Black men voting because there was this sense that they were not real Americans. They weren’t worthy of citizenship,” Anderson said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Understanding that the Reconstruction Act wasn’t enough, Congress passed the 15th Amendment in 1869. Clocking in at 46 words long, it decreed: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Anderson said the intention was good, but the law ultimately ushered in the Jim Crow era as once again states worked to circumvent the federal law. Sometimes it was through raw violence and intimidation of Black voters — but often, Anderson said, it was also through what she called “bureaucratic violence.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The states figured out, OK, we can’t say we don’t want Black folks to vote,” Anderson said, so they instead crafted laws and policies that never mentioned race but had the effect of disenfranchising Black voters.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Those laws included literacy and constitutional tests, which Black voters couldn’t pass because they’d been denied education, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses that exempted men who had the right to vote before 1867 from these various tests and taxes — so that poor and illiterate white men wouldn’t be barred from voting.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They figured out how to make it sound reasonable, how to make it sound like a protection of democracy, to make a sound like they’re going for election integrity,” Anderson said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>These laws were often upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court under the guise that they didn’t mention race, Anderson said. The blueprint was the Mississippi Plan of 1890, which pioneered many of those Jim Crow voter suppression laws and was upheld by the court because its language was “colorblind.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When it passed, Anderson said, around 190,000 Black men were registered to vote in Mississippi. Two years later, that number had dropped to 8,600.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That is the power of the Mississippi Plan, massive disfranchisement,” she said. “They knew exactly what they were doing.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Anderson said things didn’t really start changing until the Voting Rights Act of 1965, though there have been efforts in the subsequent decades to limit voting access. That includes the 1993 Motor Voter Act, which made voter registration easier but also included a provision requiring states to clean up their voter rolls. Anderson said it resulted in tens of thousands of eligible voters being scrubbed from the rolls in mostly Southern states — and unable to vote in key races, including the 2000 presidential contest.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And who are those people? We know who they are by statistics, by research. They’re overwhelmingly young people, poor people and minorities,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That brings us to the modern era, and Trump’s attacks on the 2020 elections. Stay tuned for more episodes on election integrity in America. \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Following a string of Waymo-fueled traffic meltdowns in the Bay Area, a new federal bill aims to improve coordination between \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/waymo\">autonomous vehicle\u003c/a> companies and emergency responders.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Rep. 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After several traffic meltdowns involving autonomous vehicles, a new bill would focus on improved coordination between driverless car companies and emergency personnel. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://kevinmullin.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/AV-Emergency-Response-Coordination-Act-1.pdf\">bill\u003c/a>, titled the AV Emergency Response Coordination Act\u003cem>,\u003c/em> calls for companies to provide response plans for emergency personnel — and to establish a 24/7 hotline for public officials, according to Mullin’s press release. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If passed, public officials would have a process to geofence areas during emergencies, so that driverless vehicles avoid certain areas while there is an ongoing safety hazard. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would also be tasked to develop national emergency standards for autonomous vehicle companies. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At Mullin’s conference on Tuesday, Lurie voiced his support for both the legislation as well as autonomous vehicles in San Francisco. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“San Francisco wants AVs on our streets, and we want them to be here safely,” Lurie said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since the city was one of the first to incorporate autonomous vehicles into its streets, Lurie continued, it has learned more than “almost any other city about how they operate in a dense, complex urban environment.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Cathy Chase, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, also spoke Tuesday, demanding higher safety standards for driverless cars. She said that they should be compared to the “best drivers, not the worst, or average drivers.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chase said that, while these failures have not yet resulted in “major” catastrophes, “we cannot and must not rely on luck.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement, Waymo’s head of federal policy and government affairs, Tiffany Moore, affirmed the company’s support of “a federal AV framework to establish standards for autonomous vehicles.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We similarly support efforts to standardize how AV developers engage with first responders,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed legislation does not currently provide additional funding for public safety agencies, which will need additional training in order to effectively cooperate with the autonomous vehicle companies — an obstacle that Mullin said he has already recognized. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mullin said he believes that the bill will garner bipartisan support. “We’ve had fruitful conversations on the AV front because it really isn’t viewed in a partisan context,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The bill will be formally introduced on Thursday, Mullin said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s Jose Velazquez contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Cathy Chase, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, also spoke Tuesday, demanding higher safety standards for driverless cars. She said that they should be compared to the “best drivers, not the worst, or average drivers.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mullin said he believes that the bill will garner bipartisan support. “We’ve had fruitful conversations on the AV front because it really isn’t viewed in a partisan context,” he said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The bill will be formally introduced on Thursday, Mullin said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s Jose Velazquez contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The new federal bill would hold autonomous vehicle companies accountable for hotlines and training for first responders.",
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"title": "‘Waymo’ Coordination Needed: Bill Aims to Address Autonomous Vehicle Mishaps | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Following a string of Waymo-fueled traffic meltdowns in the Bay Area, a new federal bill aims to improve coordination between \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/waymo\">autonomous vehicle\u003c/a> companies and emergency responders.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Rep. Kevin Mullin, D-San Mateo, announced Tuesday that his proposed legislation will target autonomous vehicles’ ability to navigate emergency situations spurred by unexpected power outages and other unusual traffic conditions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The technology is remarkable in normal conditions; what I’m concerned about is abnormal conditions,” Mullin said. “These vehicles not only need to evolve their technology to deal with that, but they need to be in direct coordination with our local public safety officials whose job it is to respond appropriately.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Waymo has created a number of headaches for emergency responders in San Francisco — most notably by causing a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12089915/sf-supe-to-launch-inquiry-on-waymos-july-fourth-traffic-meltdown\">“traffic meltdown”\u003c/a> during the city’s Fourth of July celebrations and grinding to a halt during the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12074861/waymo-to-report-on-mass-stranding-event-during-sf-december-blackout\">December\u003c/a> power outages. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>These events prompted Mayor Daniel Lurie to send a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12091460/san-francisco-mayor-daniel-lurie-calls-on-state-to-tighten-autonomous-vehicle-regulations\">letter\u003c/a> to the state Secretary of Transportation, asking for new standards for autonomous vehicles, including proof that they are ready for large crowds and unusual traffic patterns. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-2278646743-scaled-e1782502896455.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086413\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mayor Daniel Lurie during a news conference on his budget proposal in San Francisco on June 1, 2026. After several traffic meltdowns involving autonomous vehicles, a new bill would focus on improved coordination between driverless car companies and emergency personnel. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://kevinmullin.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/AV-Emergency-Response-Coordination-Act-1.pdf\">bill\u003c/a>, titled the AV Emergency Response Coordination Act\u003cem>,\u003c/em> calls for companies to provide response plans for emergency personnel — and to establish a 24/7 hotline for public officials, according to Mullin’s press release. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If passed, public officials would have a process to geofence areas during emergencies, so that driverless vehicles avoid certain areas while there is an ongoing safety hazard. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would also be tasked to develop national emergency standards for autonomous vehicle companies. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At Mullin’s conference on Tuesday, Lurie voiced his support for both the legislation as well as autonomous vehicles in San Francisco. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“San Francisco wants AVs on our streets, and we want them to be here safely,” Lurie said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since the city was one of the first to incorporate autonomous vehicles into its streets, Lurie continued, it has learned more than “almost any other city about how they operate in a dense, complex urban environment.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Cathy Chase, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, also spoke Tuesday, demanding higher safety standards for driverless cars. She said that they should be compared to the “best drivers, not the worst, or average drivers.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chase said that, while these failures have not yet resulted in “major” catastrophes, “we cannot and must not rely on luck.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement, Waymo’s head of federal policy and government affairs, Tiffany Moore, affirmed the company’s support of “a federal AV framework to establish standards for autonomous vehicles.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We similarly support efforts to standardize how AV developers engage with first responders,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed legislation does not currently provide additional funding for public safety agencies, which will need additional training in order to effectively cooperate with the autonomous vehicle companies — an obstacle that Mullin said he has already recognized. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mullin said he believes that the bill will garner bipartisan support. “We’ve had fruitful conversations on the AV front because it really isn’t viewed in a partisan context,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The bill will be formally introduced on Thursday, Mullin said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s Jose Velazquez contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "theyre-on-our-flag-but-do-long-gone-grizzly-bears-belong-in-modern-california",
"title": "They’re on Our Flag, but Do Long-Gone Grizzly Bears Belong in Modern California?",
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"headTitle": "They’re on Our Flag, but Do Long-Gone Grizzly Bears Belong in Modern California? | 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\n\n\n\u003cp>The grizzly bear on California’s flag went extinct a century ago in the Golden State. Now, a group of tribes and environmentalists is urging the Legislature to study whether it’s possible to bring them back.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Grizzlies once lived across most of California. As many as 10,000 may have roamed before the Gold Rush. They were so prevalent that when California settlers tried to form their own nation, they called it the Bear Flag Republic. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Settlers systematically exterminated the animals, and they were gone by the 1920s, leaving the smaller black bear as the only surviving bear species.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A century and 34.5 million more people later, Inglewood Democratic Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/laura-richardson-187466\">Laura Richardson\u003c/a>’s \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb1305\">Senate Bill 1305\u003c/a> would task the California Department of Fish and Wildlife with creating a “roadmap that evaluates whether, and under what conditions, reintroduction of the grizzly bear is feasible and advisable.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The measure provides no funding to carry out the study, which could be provided by a future Legislature or an outside group. And even if it were funded and its recommendations acted on, it would be several years and require help from a potentially adversarial federal government before a grizzly bear’s claws ever cut tracks in California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1339\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076801\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-1536x1028.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">It is often said that the bear on the modern California state flag is based on “Monarch,” one of the last grizzly bears to live in the state. But researchers now believe it was based on the drawing of another bear, Samson. (Joseph Sohm/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposal’s hypothetical nature has done little to ease tensions over the prospect of some day returning the continent’s second-largest land predator to the nation’s most populous state. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On one side are organizations representing rural communities, hunting organizations and ranchers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They argue it’s preposterous to consider reintroducing aggressive 800-pound bears to California’s degraded, drought- and fire-prone landscapes. Rural areas, they say, are already overwhelmed with conflicts with \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/mountain-lion-attacks-2-people-in-california-foothills-killing-1/\">mountain lions\u003c/a> and growing \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Black-Bear\">black bear\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article316446094.html\">wolf populations\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I just don’t think that our California today is ready for a grizzly bear,” Republican Assemblymember \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/heather-hadwick-187417\">Heather Hadwick\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=1192&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told the Assembly wildlife committee\u003c/a> last month. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hadwick’s sprawling rural district in northeastern California has faced years of tensions over predators, especially wolves, killing livestock and frightening small towns.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Environmentalists, tribes support \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At least 40 groups, including tribes, environmentalists and animal welfare organizations, support the bill, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/\">CalMatters Digital Democracy database\u003c/a>.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>They say bringing back the state’s biggest apex land predator would improve the ecosystem and right an ecological wrong from California’s past.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I can see the ways in which my homeland has suffered from the loss of iconic species such as the grizzly, and that this loss lingers in our heart and in the attenuation of a millennia-old relationship,” Tiana Williams-Claussen, director of the Yurok Tribe’s wildlife department, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=27&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told lawmakers last month\u003c/a>. The Yurok and Tejon tribes are the bill’s cosponsors.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092588\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Brook Thompson of the Yurok Tribe overlooks the removal site of the Iron Gate Dam, allowing the Klamath River to run in its original path in that area for the first time in nearly a century, near Hornbrook, California, on Aug. 14, 2024. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.calgrizzly.org/feasibility-study\">A 2025 study\u003c/a> from a coalition of tribes, environmentalists and university researchers found that the Yurok lands on the north coast as well as the nearby Klamath Mountains and Trinity Alps could be suitable grizzly habitat. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The study also singled out the southern Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks, as well as the Transverse Mountains that span from San Bernardino County to Santa Barbara County.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It estimated the habitats could sustain between 424 and 1,713 grizzlies, though it recommends bringing in a population of 25 grizzlies to start. Grizzlies can be found in Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Supporters of the proposal say grizzlies would help California’s ecosystem. The giant omnivorous bears till soil as they root up meals, helping restore conifer forests, prairies and oak savannas, easing fire danger.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Grizzlies also serve as a check on overpopulation of prey. Grizzlies could reduce California’s human conflicts with black bears since grizzlies compete for food with their smaller cousins. Grizzlies also kill and eat black bears.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The loss of grizzlies might have been one of those contributing factors to that (black bear population) overgrowth,” Williams-Claussen said in an interview.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Grizzlies and the urban-rural divide\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Supporters’ arguments have appealed to the Democrats who control the Legislature. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Only Republicans have voted against the bill, which is pending before the Assembly Appropriations Committee when the Legislature returns Aug. 3.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Richardson didn’t return an interview request for this story. The measure’s Democratic coauthors are lawmakers from Southern California representing predominantly urban districts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/072126-Stern-and-Richardson-Split-01-CM-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"A side-by-side split image showing a person on the left in a blue suit and a red tie holding a cell phone in their hand. The person on the right is wearing a black blazer over a blouse with a black-and-white pattern while speaking on the California Assembly floor into a microphone.\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left, state Sen. Henry Stern and state Sen. Laura Richardson. Photos by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This spring, one of the coauthors, Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/henry-stern-36368\">Henry Stern\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279103#t=1532&f=20798ddeaaa55218d15cdbf945d9f503\">told the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee\u003c/a> that a mountain lion recently attacked one of his neighbors, so he understands rural concerns about predators.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Even so, learning to coexist with them is just part of living in a beautiful state filled with wildlife, Stern said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>“We want to live in a California where — that risk — there’s some beauty in it,” said Stern, who represents the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles. “To have that element in our lives, as opposed to just sterilizing our landscapes and our nature so that nothing else could ever be a risk … I think it makes us more human to have wildness in our lives.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Elizabeth Washoe, a Native American from Modoc County, hears that kind of talk from urban residents and rolls her eyes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s nothing I would love more than to see grizzly bears on the beach at Santa Barbara chasing rich people,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But she said that would be cruel — to the bears.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Like many in California, Washoe’s people still pay homage to grizzlies through ceremonial bear dances, but she said it’s not “ethically right to bring them back.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She hopes lawmakers consider what life would be like for the grizzlies they’d have captured and brought to California, where they would face a landscape radically different and eight times more populated than when the bears last lived here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The bears don’t have any say in it,” Washoe said. “Where they’re at, they’re living a pretty good life, and we’d take them and put them here in a landscape that is so dramatically changed from what it was the last time that the bears were truly living a good life here … I understand the idea of it, but to me it feels egotistical.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">State wildlife officials wary\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The California agency that would be responsible for studying grizzly bear reintroduction does not appear eager to take it on. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Department of Fish and Wildlife, which hasn’t taken an official position on the legislation, does not comment on pending bills, spokesperson Peter Tira told CalMatters this week. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office also declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But there’s no indication the department’s position on grizzlies has changed since a former spokesperson told a reporter in 2023 that wildlife officials can barely keep up with existing predator conflicts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12084670\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks about his state budget proposal on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Sacramento, California. (Jeff Chiu/AP)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Bringing another predator into the state that we would have to manage and come up with some program to figure out what happens when the grizzly attacks a human or kills livestock does not seem feasible for us,” then-spokesperson Jordan Traverso told \u003ca href=\"https://www.altaonline.com/dispatches/a43127739/grizzly-bear-return-california-peter-alagona/\">the Alta Journal\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The department is chronically underfunded and understaffed. A legislative analysis for this year’s bill notes that Fish and Wildlife has enough cash and staff to complete just 38% of its existing duties. The department “would be unable to absorb the demand this roadmap would have on staff time and resources” according to the analysis.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>David Bess, who recently retired as its top law enforcement officer overseeing California’s game wardens, said the department is “drowning in work,” much of it trying to manage conflicts with predators already on the landscape.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I just don’t see where the department even has the capacity to do it,” Bess said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Trump’s grizzly proposal\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now, President Donald Trump’s administration has added a new wrinkle to the debate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, the administration issued a \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/07/15/nx-s1-5893400/trump-administrations-proposal-to-shift-management-of-grizzly-bears-causes-confusion\">proposed rule change\u003c/a> that seeks to return management of grizzlies to states, despite the bears being protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Environmentalists fear Trump’s proposal would allow conservative states to begin killing grizzlies to appease ranchers and big game hunters. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1111\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12019868\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5.jpg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-800x556.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-1020x708.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-1536x1067.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A grizzly bear mother and her cub in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. (Karen Bleier/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed federal rule wouldn’t impact California’s grizzly proposal, since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would be in charge of any reintroduction program, said Andrea Zaccardi, carnivore conservation legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity, which supports Richardson’s legislation. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But having the bears in environmentally friendly states such as California could prove helpful if other states begin aggressively killing them off, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Hopefully, they would be managed more responsibly there,” said Zaccardi, whose organization has \u003ca href=\"https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/grizzly_bear/bring_back_the_bears.html\">unsuccessfully petitioned the feds\u003c/a> to return grizzly bears to California. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/07/california-grizzly-bear-reintroduction-bill/\">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\n",
"blocks": [
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"innerHTML": "\n\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",
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"\n\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"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The grizzly bear on California’s flag went extinct a century ago in the Golden State. Now, a group of tribes and environmentalists is urging the Legislature to study whether it’s possible to bring them back.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The grizzly bear on California’s flag went extinct a century ago in the Golden State. Now, a group of tribes and environmentalists is urging the Legislature to study whether it’s possible to bring them back.\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Grizzlies once lived across most of California. As many as 10,000 may have roamed before the Gold Rush. They were so prevalent that when California settlers tried to form their own nation, they called it the Bear Flag Republic. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Grizzlies once lived across most of California. As many as 10,000 may have roamed before the Gold Rush. They were so prevalent that when California settlers tried to form their own nation, they called it the Bear Flag Republic. \u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Settlers systematically exterminated the animals, and they were gone by the 1920s, leaving the smaller black bear as the only surviving bear species.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Settlers systematically exterminated the animals, and they were gone by the 1920s, leaving the smaller black bear as the only surviving bear species.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A century and 34.5 million more people later, Inglewood Democratic Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/laura-richardson-187466\">Laura Richardson\u003c/a>’s \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb1305\">Senate Bill 1305\u003c/a> would task the California Department of Fish and Wildlife with creating a “roadmap that evaluates whether, and under what conditions, reintroduction of the grizzly bear is feasible and advisable.” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>A century and 34.5 million more people later, Inglewood Democratic Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/laura-richardson-187466\">Laura Richardson\u003c/a>’s \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb1305\">Senate Bill 1305\u003c/a> would task the California Department of Fish and Wildlife with creating a “roadmap that evaluates whether, and under what conditions, reintroduction of the grizzly bear is feasible and advisable.” \u003c/p>\n"
],
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The measure provides no funding to carry out the study, which could be provided by a future Legislature or an outside group. And even if it were funded and its recommendations acted on, it would be several years and require help from a potentially adversarial federal government before a grizzly bear’s claws ever cut tracks in California.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The measure provides no funding to carry out the study, which could be provided by a future Legislature or an outside group. And even if it were funded and its recommendations acted on, it would be several years and require help from a potentially adversarial federal government before a grizzly bear’s claws ever cut tracks in California.\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
"id": 12076801,
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-1536x1028.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076801\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-1536x1028.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">It is often said that the bear on the modern California state flag is based on “Monarch,” one of the last grizzly bears to live in the state. But researchers now believe it was based on the drawing of another bear, Samson.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076801\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">It is often said that the bear on the modern California state flag is based on “Monarch,” one of the last grizzly bears to live in the state. But researchers now believe it was based on the drawing of another bear, Samson.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The proposal’s hypothetical nature has done little to ease tensions over the prospect of some day returning the continent’s second-largest land predator to the nation’s most populous state. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The proposal’s hypothetical nature has done little to ease tensions over the prospect of some day returning the continent’s second-largest land predator to the nation’s most populous state. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On one side are organizations representing rural communities, hunting organizations and ranchers.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>On one side are organizations representing rural communities, hunting organizations and ranchers.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>They argue it’s preposterous to consider reintroducing aggressive 800-pound bears to California’s degraded, drought- and fire-prone landscapes. Rural areas, they say, are already overwhelmed with conflicts with \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/mountain-lion-attacks-2-people-in-california-foothills-killing-1/\">mountain lions\u003c/a> and growing \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Black-Bear\">black bear\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article316446094.html\">wolf populations\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>They argue it’s preposterous to consider reintroducing aggressive 800-pound bears to California’s degraded, drought- and fire-prone landscapes. Rural areas, they say, are already overwhelmed with conflicts with \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/mountain-lion-attacks-2-people-in-california-foothills-killing-1/\">mountain lions\u003c/a> and growing \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Black-Bear\">black bear\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article316446094.html\">wolf populations\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I just don’t think that our California today is ready for a grizzly bear,” Republican Assemblymember \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/heather-hadwick-187417\">Heather Hadwick\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=1192&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told the Assembly wildlife committee\u003c/a> last month. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“I just don’t think that our California today is ready for a grizzly bear,” Republican Assemblymember \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/heather-hadwick-187417\">Heather Hadwick\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=1192&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told the Assembly wildlife committee\u003c/a> last month. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Hadwick’s sprawling rural district in northeastern California has faced years of tensions over predators, especially wolves, killing livestock and frightening small towns.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Hadwick’s sprawling rural district in northeastern California has faced years of tensions over predators, especially wolves, killing livestock and frightening small towns.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "Environmentalists, tribes support ",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Environmentalists, tribes support \u003c/h2>\n",
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"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Environmentalists, tribes support \u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At least 40 groups, including tribes, environmentalists and animal welfare organizations, support the bill, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/\">CalMatters Digital Democracy database\u003c/a>.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>They say bringing back the state’s biggest apex land predator would improve the ecosystem and right an ecological wrong from California’s past.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>At least 40 groups, including tribes, environmentalists and animal welfare organizations, support the bill, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/\">CalMatters Digital Democracy database\u003c/a>.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>They say bringing back the state’s biggest apex land predator would improve the ecosystem and right an ecological wrong from California’s past.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I can see the ways in which my homeland has suffered from the loss of iconic species such as the grizzly, and that this loss lingers in our heart and in the attenuation of a millennia-old relationship,” Tiana Williams-Claussen, director of the Yurok Tribe’s wildlife department, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=27&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told lawmakers last month\u003c/a>. The Yurok and Tejon tribes are the bill’s cosponsors.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I can see the ways in which my homeland has suffered from the loss of iconic species such as the grizzly, and that this loss lingers in our heart and in the attenuation of a millennia-old relationship,” Tiana Williams-Claussen, director of the Yurok Tribe’s wildlife department, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=27&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told lawmakers last month\u003c/a>. The Yurok and Tejon tribes are the bill’s cosponsors.\u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092588\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Brook Thompson of the Yurok Tribe overlooks the removal site of the Iron Gate Dam, allowing the Klamath River to run in its original path in that area for the first time in nearly a century, near Hornbrook, California, on Aug. 14, 2024.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092588\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Brook Thompson of the Yurok Tribe overlooks the removal site of the Iron Gate Dam, allowing the Klamath River to run in its original path in that area for the first time in nearly a century, near Hornbrook, California, on Aug. 14, 2024.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.calgrizzly.org/feasibility-study\">A 2025 study\u003c/a> from a coalition of tribes, environmentalists and university researchers found that the Yurok lands on the north coast as well as the nearby Klamath Mountains and Trinity Alps could be suitable grizzly habitat. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.calgrizzly.org/feasibility-study\">A 2025 study\u003c/a> from a coalition of tribes, environmentalists and university researchers found that the Yurok lands on the north coast as well as the nearby Klamath Mountains and Trinity Alps could be suitable grizzly habitat. \u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The study also singled out the southern Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks, as well as the Transverse Mountains that span from San Bernardino County to Santa Barbara County.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It estimated the habitats could sustain between 424 and 1,713 grizzlies, though it recommends bringing in a population of 25 grizzlies to start. Grizzlies can be found in Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The study also singled out the southern Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks, as well as the Transverse Mountains that span from San Bernardino County to Santa Barbara County.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It estimated the habitats could sustain between 424 and 1,713 grizzlies, though it recommends bringing in a population of 25 grizzlies to start. Grizzlies can be found in Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Supporters of the proposal say grizzlies would help California’s ecosystem. The giant omnivorous bears till soil as they root up meals, helping restore conifer forests, prairies and oak savannas, easing fire danger.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Supporters of the proposal say grizzlies would help California’s ecosystem. The giant omnivorous bears till soil as they root up meals, helping restore conifer forests, prairies and oak savannas, easing fire danger.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Grizzlies also serve as a check on overpopulation of prey. Grizzlies could reduce California’s human conflicts with black bears since grizzlies compete for food with their smaller cousins. Grizzlies also kill and eat black bears.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Grizzlies also serve as a check on overpopulation of prey. Grizzlies could reduce California’s human conflicts with black bears since grizzlies compete for food with their smaller cousins. Grizzlies also kill and eat black bears.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The loss of grizzlies might have been one of those contributing factors to that (black bear population) overgrowth,” Williams-Claussen said in an interview.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“The loss of grizzlies might have been one of those contributing factors to that (black bear population) overgrowth,” Williams-Claussen said in an interview.\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "Grizzlies and the urban-rural divide",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Grizzlies and the urban-rural divide\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Grizzlies and the urban-rural divide\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Supporters’ arguments have appealed to the Democrats who control the Legislature. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Supporters’ arguments have appealed to the Democrats who control the Legislature. \u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Only Republicans have voted against the bill, which is pending before the Assembly Appropriations Committee when the Legislature returns Aug. 3.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Only Republicans have voted against the bill, which is pending before the Assembly Appropriations Committee when the Legislature returns Aug. 3.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Richardson didn’t return an interview request for this story. The measure’s Democratic coauthors are lawmakers from Southern California representing predominantly urban districts.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Richardson didn’t return an interview request for this story. The measure’s Democratic coauthors are lawmakers from Southern California representing predominantly urban districts.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image\">\u003cimg src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/072126-Stern-and-Richardson-Split-01-CM-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"A side-by-side split image showing a person on the left in a blue suit and a red tie holding a cell phone in their hand. The person on the right is wearing a black blazer over a blouse with a black-and-white pattern while speaking on the California Assembly floor into a microphone.\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left, state Sen. Henry Stern and state Sen. Laura Richardson. Photos by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image\">\u003cimg src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/072126-Stern-and-Richardson-Split-01-CM-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"A side-by-side split image showing a person on the left in a blue suit and a red tie holding a cell phone in their hand. The person on the right is wearing a black blazer over a blouse with a black-and-white pattern while speaking on the California Assembly floor into a microphone.\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left, state Sen. Henry Stern and state Sen. Laura Richardson. Photos by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This spring, one of the coauthors, Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/henry-stern-36368\">Henry Stern\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279103#t=1532&f=20798ddeaaa55218d15cdbf945d9f503\">told the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee\u003c/a> that a mountain lion recently attacked one of his neighbors, so he understands rural concerns about predators.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>This spring, one of the coauthors, Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/henry-stern-36368\">Henry Stern\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279103#t=1532&f=20798ddeaaa55218d15cdbf945d9f503\">told the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee\u003c/a> that a mountain lion recently attacked one of his neighbors, so he understands rural concerns about predators.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Even so, learning to coexist with them is just part of living in a beautiful state filled with wildlife, Stern said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>“We want to live in a California where — that risk — there’s some beauty in it,” said Stern, who represents the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles. “To have that element in our lives, as opposed to just sterilizing our landscapes and our nature so that nothing else could ever be a risk … I think it makes us more human to have wildness in our lives.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Elizabeth Washoe, a Native American from Modoc County, hears that kind of talk from urban residents and rolls her eyes.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There’s nothing I would love more than to see grizzly bears on the beach at Santa Barbara chasing rich people,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But she said that would be cruel — to the bears.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Like many in California, Washoe’s people still pay homage to grizzlies through ceremonial bear dances, but she said it’s not “ethically right to bring them back.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Like many in California, Washoe’s people still pay homage to grizzlies through ceremonial bear dances, but she said it’s not “ethically right to bring them back.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She hopes lawmakers consider what life would be like for the grizzlies they’d have captured and brought to California, where they would face a landscape radically different and eight times more populated than when the bears last lived here.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She hopes lawmakers consider what life would be like for the grizzlies they’d have captured and brought to California, where they would face a landscape radically different and eight times more populated than when the bears last lived here.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The bears don’t have any say in it,” Washoe said. “Where they’re at, they’re living a pretty good life, and we’d take them and put them here in a landscape that is so dramatically changed from what it was the last time that the bears were truly living a good life here … I understand the idea of it, but to me it feels egotistical.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“The bears don’t have any say in it,” Washoe said. “Where they’re at, they’re living a pretty good life, and we’d take them and put them here in a landscape that is so dramatically changed from what it was the last time that the bears were truly living a good life here … I understand the idea of it, but to me it feels egotistical.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "State wildlife officials wary",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The California agency that would be responsible for studying grizzly bear reintroduction does not appear eager to take it on. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The California agency that would be responsible for studying grizzly bear reintroduction does not appear eager to take it on. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Department of Fish and Wildlife, which hasn’t taken an official position on the legislation, does not comment on pending bills, spokesperson Peter Tira told CalMatters this week. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office also declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But there’s no indication the department’s position on grizzlies has changed since a former spokesperson told a reporter in 2023 that wildlife officials can barely keep up with existing predator conflicts.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But there’s no indication the department’s position on grizzlies has changed since a former spokesperson told a reporter in 2023 that wildlife officials can barely keep up with existing predator conflicts.\u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12084670\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks about his state budget proposal on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Sacramento, California. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Bringing another predator into the state that we would have to manage and come up with some program to figure out what happens when the grizzly attacks a human or kills livestock does not seem feasible for us,” then-spokesperson Jordan Traverso told \u003ca href=\"https://www.altaonline.com/dispatches/a43127739/grizzly-bear-return-california-peter-alagona/\">the Alta Journal\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Bringing another predator into the state that we would have to manage and come up with some program to figure out what happens when the grizzly attacks a human or kills livestock does not seem feasible for us,” then-spokesperson Jordan Traverso told \u003ca href=\"https://www.altaonline.com/dispatches/a43127739/grizzly-bear-return-california-peter-alagona/\">the Alta Journal\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The department is chronically underfunded and understaffed. A legislative analysis for this year’s bill notes that Fish and Wildlife has enough cash and staff to complete just 38% of its existing duties. The department “would be unable to absorb the demand this roadmap would have on staff time and resources” according to the analysis.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The department is chronically underfunded and understaffed. A legislative analysis for this year’s bill notes that Fish and Wildlife has enough cash and staff to complete just 38% of its existing duties. The department “would be unable to absorb the demand this roadmap would have on staff time and resources” according to the analysis.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>David Bess, who recently retired as its top law enforcement officer overseeing California’s game wardens, said the department is “drowning in work,” much of it trying to manage conflicts with predators already on the landscape.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>David Bess, who recently retired as its top law enforcement officer overseeing California’s game wardens, said the department is “drowning in work,” much of it trying to manage conflicts with predators already on the landscape.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I just don’t see where the department even has the capacity to do it,” Bess said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I just don’t see where the department even has the capacity to do it,” Bess said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Trump’s grizzly proposal",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Now, President Donald Trump’s administration has added a new wrinkle to the debate. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, the administration issued a \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/07/15/nx-s1-5893400/trump-administrations-proposal-to-shift-management-of-grizzly-bears-causes-confusion\">proposed rule change\u003c/a> that seeks to return management of grizzlies to states, despite the bears being protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, the administration issued a \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/07/15/nx-s1-5893400/trump-administrations-proposal-to-shift-management-of-grizzly-bears-causes-confusion\">proposed rule change\u003c/a> that seeks to return management of grizzlies to states, despite the bears being protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Environmentalists fear Trump’s proposal would allow conservative states to begin killing grizzlies to appease ranchers and big game hunters. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Environmentalists fear Trump’s proposal would allow conservative states to begin killing grizzlies to appease ranchers and big game hunters. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12019868\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5.jpg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-800x556.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-1020x708.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-1536x1067.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A grizzly bear mother and her cub in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The proposed federal rule wouldn’t impact California’s grizzly proposal, since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would be in charge of any reintroduction program, said Andrea Zaccardi, carnivore conservation legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity, which supports Richardson’s legislation. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But having the bears in environmentally friendly states such as California could prove helpful if other states begin aggressively killing them off, she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But having the bears in environmentally friendly states such as California could prove helpful if other states begin aggressively killing them off, she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Hopefully, they would be managed more responsibly there,” said Zaccardi, whose organization has \u003ca href=\"https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/grizzly_bear/bring_back_the_bears.html\">unsuccessfully petitioned the feds\u003c/a> to return grizzly bears to California. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Hopefully, they would be managed more responsibly there,” said Zaccardi, whose organization has \u003ca href=\"https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/grizzly_bear/bring_back_the_bears.html\">unsuccessfully petitioned the feds\u003c/a> to return grizzly bears to California. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/07/california-grizzly-bear-reintroduction-bill/\">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",
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"excerpt": "Democrats are advancing a bill over objections from rural residents, ranchers and Republicans that would study whether California should bring back grizzly bears.",
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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\n\n\n\u003cp>The grizzly bear on California’s flag went extinct a century ago in the Golden State. Now, a group of tribes and environmentalists is urging the Legislature to study whether it’s possible to bring them back.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Grizzlies once lived across most of California. As many as 10,000 may have roamed before the Gold Rush. They were so prevalent that when California settlers tried to form their own nation, they called it the Bear Flag Republic. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Settlers systematically exterminated the animals, and they were gone by the 1920s, leaving the smaller black bear as the only surviving bear species.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A century and 34.5 million more people later, Inglewood Democratic Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/laura-richardson-187466\">Laura Richardson\u003c/a>’s \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb1305\">Senate Bill 1305\u003c/a> would task the California Department of Fish and Wildlife with creating a “roadmap that evaluates whether, and under what conditions, reintroduction of the grizzly bear is feasible and advisable.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The measure provides no funding to carry out the study, which could be provided by a future Legislature or an outside group. And even if it were funded and its recommendations acted on, it would be several years and require help from a potentially adversarial federal government before a grizzly bear’s claws ever cut tracks in California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1339\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076801\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260317-MONARCH-THE-BEAR-04-KQED-1536x1028.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">It is often said that the bear on the modern California state flag is based on “Monarch,” one of the last grizzly bears to live in the state. But researchers now believe it was based on the drawing of another bear, Samson. (Joseph Sohm/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposal’s hypothetical nature has done little to ease tensions over the prospect of some day returning the continent’s second-largest land predator to the nation’s most populous state. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On one side are organizations representing rural communities, hunting organizations and ranchers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They argue it’s preposterous to consider reintroducing aggressive 800-pound bears to California’s degraded, drought- and fire-prone landscapes. Rural areas, they say, are already overwhelmed with conflicts with \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/mountain-lion-attacks-2-people-in-california-foothills-killing-1/\">mountain lions\u003c/a> and growing \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Black-Bear\">black bear\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article316446094.html\">wolf populations\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I just don’t think that our California today is ready for a grizzly bear,” Republican Assemblymember \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/heather-hadwick-187417\">Heather Hadwick\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=1192&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told the Assembly wildlife committee\u003c/a> last month. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hadwick’s sprawling rural district in northeastern California has faced years of tensions over predators, especially wolves, killing livestock and frightening small towns.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Environmentalists, tribes support \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At least 40 groups, including tribes, environmentalists and animal welfare organizations, support the bill, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/\">CalMatters Digital Democracy database\u003c/a>.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>They say bringing back the state’s biggest apex land predator would improve the ecosystem and right an ecological wrong from California’s past.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I can see the ways in which my homeland has suffered from the loss of iconic species such as the grizzly, and that this loss lingers in our heart and in the attenuation of a millennia-old relationship,” Tiana Williams-Claussen, director of the Yurok Tribe’s wildlife department, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279747#t=27&f=ea737d404cb65c8e1f0d48a47f0e4922\">told lawmakers last month\u003c/a>. The Yurok and Tejon tribes are the bill’s cosponsors.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12092588\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/Yurok-Tribe-Getty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Brook Thompson of the Yurok Tribe overlooks the removal site of the Iron Gate Dam, allowing the Klamath River to run in its original path in that area for the first time in nearly a century, near Hornbrook, California, on Aug. 14, 2024. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.calgrizzly.org/feasibility-study\">A 2025 study\u003c/a> from a coalition of tribes, environmentalists and university researchers found that the Yurok lands on the north coast as well as the nearby Klamath Mountains and Trinity Alps could be suitable grizzly habitat. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The study also singled out the southern Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks, as well as the Transverse Mountains that span from San Bernardino County to Santa Barbara County.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It estimated the habitats could sustain between 424 and 1,713 grizzlies, though it recommends bringing in a population of 25 grizzlies to start. Grizzlies can be found in Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Supporters of the proposal say grizzlies would help California’s ecosystem. The giant omnivorous bears till soil as they root up meals, helping restore conifer forests, prairies and oak savannas, easing fire danger.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Grizzlies also serve as a check on overpopulation of prey. Grizzlies could reduce California’s human conflicts with black bears since grizzlies compete for food with their smaller cousins. Grizzlies also kill and eat black bears.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The loss of grizzlies might have been one of those contributing factors to that (black bear population) overgrowth,” Williams-Claussen said in an interview.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Grizzlies and the urban-rural divide\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Supporters’ arguments have appealed to the Democrats who control the Legislature. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Only Republicans have voted against the bill, which is pending before the Assembly Appropriations Committee when the Legislature returns Aug. 3.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Richardson didn’t return an interview request for this story. The measure’s Democratic coauthors are lawmakers from Southern California representing predominantly urban districts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/072126-Stern-and-Richardson-Split-01-CM-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"A side-by-side split image showing a person on the left in a blue suit and a red tie holding a cell phone in their hand. The person on the right is wearing a black blazer over a blouse with a black-and-white pattern while speaking on the California Assembly floor into a microphone.\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left, state Sen. Henry Stern and state Sen. Laura Richardson. Photos by Fred Greaves for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This spring, one of the coauthors, Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/henry-stern-36368\">Henry Stern\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/hearings/279103#t=1532&f=20798ddeaaa55218d15cdbf945d9f503\">told the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee\u003c/a> that a mountain lion recently attacked one of his neighbors, so he understands rural concerns about predators.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Even so, learning to coexist with them is just part of living in a beautiful state filled with wildlife, Stern said.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>“We want to live in a California where — that risk — there’s some beauty in it,” said Stern, who represents the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles. “To have that element in our lives, as opposed to just sterilizing our landscapes and our nature so that nothing else could ever be a risk … I think it makes us more human to have wildness in our lives.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Elizabeth Washoe, a Native American from Modoc County, hears that kind of talk from urban residents and rolls her eyes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s nothing I would love more than to see grizzly bears on the beach at Santa Barbara chasing rich people,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But she said that would be cruel — to the bears.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Like many in California, Washoe’s people still pay homage to grizzlies through ceremonial bear dances, but she said it’s not “ethically right to bring them back.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She hopes lawmakers consider what life would be like for the grizzlies they’d have captured and brought to California, where they would face a landscape radically different and eight times more populated than when the bears last lived here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The bears don’t have any say in it,” Washoe said. “Where they’re at, they’re living a pretty good life, and we’d take them and put them here in a landscape that is so dramatically changed from what it was the last time that the bears were truly living a good life here … I understand the idea of it, but to me it feels egotistical.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">State wildlife officials wary\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The California agency that would be responsible for studying grizzly bear reintroduction does not appear eager to take it on. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Department of Fish and Wildlife, which hasn’t taken an official position on the legislation, does not comment on pending bills, spokesperson Peter Tira told CalMatters this week. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office also declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But there’s no indication the department’s position on grizzlies has changed since a former spokesperson told a reporter in 2023 that wildlife officials can barely keep up with existing predator conflicts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12084670\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GavinNewsomAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks about his state budget proposal on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Sacramento, California. (Jeff Chiu/AP)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Bringing another predator into the state that we would have to manage and come up with some program to figure out what happens when the grizzly attacks a human or kills livestock does not seem feasible for us,” then-spokesperson Jordan Traverso told \u003ca href=\"https://www.altaonline.com/dispatches/a43127739/grizzly-bear-return-california-peter-alagona/\">the Alta Journal\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The department is chronically underfunded and understaffed. A legislative analysis for this year’s bill notes that Fish and Wildlife has enough cash and staff to complete just 38% of its existing duties. The department “would be unable to absorb the demand this roadmap would have on staff time and resources” according to the analysis.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>David Bess, who recently retired as its top law enforcement officer overseeing California’s game wardens, said the department is “drowning in work,” much of it trying to manage conflicts with predators already on the landscape.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I just don’t see where the department even has the capacity to do it,” Bess said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Trump’s grizzly proposal\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now, President Donald Trump’s administration has added a new wrinkle to the debate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, the administration issued a \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/07/15/nx-s1-5893400/trump-administrations-proposal-to-shift-management-of-grizzly-bears-causes-confusion\">proposed rule change\u003c/a> that seeks to return management of grizzlies to states, despite the bears being protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Environmentalists fear Trump’s proposal would allow conservative states to begin killing grizzlies to appease ranchers and big game hunters. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1111\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12019868\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5.jpg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-800x556.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-1020x708.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-5-1536x1067.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A grizzly bear mother and her cub in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. (Karen Bleier/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed federal rule wouldn’t impact California’s grizzly proposal, since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would be in charge of any reintroduction program, said Andrea Zaccardi, carnivore conservation legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity, which supports Richardson’s legislation. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But having the bears in environmentally friendly states such as California could prove helpful if other states begin aggressively killing them off, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Hopefully, they would be managed more responsibly there,” said Zaccardi, whose organization has \u003ca href=\"https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/grizzly_bear/bring_back_the_bears.html\">unsuccessfully petitioned the feds\u003c/a> to return grizzly bears to California. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/07/california-grizzly-bear-reintroduction-bill/\">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\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "The Backlash to Newsom’s Return-to-Office Mandate and HHS Withholds Medicaid Payments to California ",
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"content": "\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order requiring state workers to return to office four days a week took effect this month. The governor says it’s about battling a “crisis of loneliness” and wanting people to “develop relationships, friendships, fall in love.” But the mandate has been met with protests and lawsuits, putting him at odds with California’s powerful public employee labor unions. Marisa and Guy talk with CapRadio politics reporter Laura Fitzgerald about why Newsom is picking this fight and how it could affect his political ambitions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Plus: the Trump administration withholds $867.5 million in Medicaid payments to California, claiming fraud in in-home care and immigrant eligibility. Who does the funding freeze impact and how are state officials responding?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Check out \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/newsletters/political-breakdown\">Political Breakdown’s weekly newsletter\u003c/a>, delivered straight to your inbox.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order requiring state workers to return to office four days a week took effect this month. The governor says it’s about battling a “crisis of loneliness” and wanting people to “develop relationships, friendships, fall in love.” But the mandate has been met with protests and lawsuits, putting him at odds with California’s powerful public employee labor unions. Marisa and Guy talk with CapRadio politics reporter Laura Fitzgerald about why Newsom is picking this fight and how it could affect his political ambitions. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Plus: the Trump administration withholds $867.5 million in Medicaid payments to California, claiming fraud in in-home care and immigrant eligibility. Who does the funding freeze impact and how are state officials responding?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Plus: the Trump administration withholds $867.5 million in Medicaid payments to California, claiming fraud in in-home care and immigrant eligibility. Who does the funding freeze impact and how are state officials responding?\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "Newsom’s return-to-office mandate may not help people “fall in love,” but it has created a standoff between the governor and California’s powerful state worker unions. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order requiring state workers to return to office four days a week took effect this month. The governor says it’s about battling a “crisis of loneliness” and wanting people to “develop relationships, friendships, fall in love.” But the mandate has been met with protests and lawsuits, putting him at odds with California’s powerful public employee labor unions. Marisa and Guy talk with CapRadio politics reporter Laura Fitzgerald about why Newsom is picking this fight and how it could affect his political ambitions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Plus: the Trump administration withholds $867.5 million in Medicaid payments to California, claiming fraud in in-home care and immigrant eligibility. Who does the funding freeze impact and how are state officials responding?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Check out \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/newsletters/political-breakdown\">Political Breakdown’s weekly newsletter\u003c/a>, delivered straight to your inbox.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>California \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/electionsnews\">election\u003c/a> officials rejected nearly 150,000 ballots in the June 2 primary election, an increase of tens of thousands over recent elections, according to a report from the secretary of state’s office. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That accounted for 1.7% of all vote-by-mail ballots cast, marking the state’s highest rejection rate since 2014, according to the California Voter Foundation. Most of the rejected ballots were reported as “not received on time,” which can mean that the ballot was either postmarked after Election Day or arrived in election offices after the June 9 receipt deadline.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s always troubling to see an increase,” said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation. “Ballots rejected due to lateness are almost always because they’re postmarked too late — not because they don’t arrive during the grace period.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12089274\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ballots are sorted the day after California’s primary election at the L.A. County Ballot Processing Center on June 3, 2026, in City of Industry, California. (Jae C. Hong/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Election officials and voting advocates attribute late ballots to changes in U.S. Postal Service practices that could result in mailpieces not being postmarked on the same day they were mailed, as well as a competitive primary for governor that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084978/california-democrats-anxious-about-wasted-votes-are-clinging-to-their-ballots\">left many voters undecided\u003c/a> until the final days of the campaign. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our experience in this election was that voters were waiting until the last minute to vote a lot more than what we’ve seen in past elections,” said Matt Moreles, the registrar of voters in Santa Clara County, which had the highest rate of vote-by-mail ballot rejections in the Bay Area at 2.6%. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, every voter receives a ballot in the mail by default, roughly a month before Election Day. Ballots returned in the mail must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive at the county registrar’s office \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12089268/supreme-court-ruling-allows-california-to-continue-accepting-ballots-after-election-day\">within a week\u003c/a> after that. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last year, USPS officials announced \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085378/usps-changes-ballot-drop-box-near-me-deadline-california-primary-vote-for-governor\">a change in “transportation operations”\u003c/a> that resulted in some mailpieces not arriving at central processing facilities, where postmarks are applied, on the same day they are mailed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As a result, a ballot dropped in a mailbox on Election Day in a community far from one of those hubs could receive a postmark the following day, making it ineligible to be counted. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Of the 148,241 vote-by-mail ballots left uncounted in California, 93,497 were rejected for late arrival. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are going to look at that as far as — is there anything we can do in our messaging to voters and in terms of educating voters about the importance of returning their ballots?” Moreles said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A smaller number — 52,290 — were rejected because the voter either failed to sign their ballot envelope or because that signature did not match their signature on file. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California law allows election officials to resolve signature issues for weeks after Election Day. Under the process known as ballot “curing,” registrars are allowed to contact voters with a missing or mismatched signature and give them a chance to fix it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Voting advocates argue that ballot rejections are a far more pertinent issue for state lawmakers to address than exceedingly rare cases of voter fraud. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1320\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12070782\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks to the press on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos on Jan. 20, 2026. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In each of California’s last five statewide elections, more than 100,000 residents did not have their vote counted because their ballot arrived too late or had a signature issue. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“To me it’s always disappointing to see ballot rejection happening, because it’s a lot of work to be a California voter,” Alexander said. “But the fact that you see all of these ballots being rejected is evidence of the careful work election officials undertake each election to make sure that only valid ballots cast are counted and that nobody is voting more than once.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers are hoping that an infusion of $10 million for voter education will help persuade Californians \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12087984/three-ways-california-could-speed-up-vote-counting\">to vote early\u003c/a> and avoid ballot issues. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The budget signed by Newsom in June includes $5 million each for the secretary of state’s office and county officials for the purpose of encouraging an earlier vote.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/electionsnews\">election\u003c/a> officials rejected nearly 150,000 ballots in the June 2 primary election, an increase of tens of thousands over recent elections, according to a report from the secretary of state’s office. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>California \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/electionsnews\">election\u003c/a> officials rejected nearly 150,000 ballots in the June 2 primary election, an increase of tens of thousands over recent elections, according to a report from the secretary of state’s office. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That accounted for 1.7% of all vote-by-mail ballots cast, marking the state’s highest rejection rate since 2014, according to the California Voter Foundation. Most of the rejected ballots were reported as “not received on time,” which can mean that the ballot was either postmarked after Election Day or arrived in election offices after the June 9 receipt deadline.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>That accounted for 1.7% of all vote-by-mail ballots cast, marking the state’s highest rejection rate since 2014, according to the California Voter Foundation. Most of the rejected ballots were reported as “not received on time,” which can mean that the ballot was either postmarked after Election Day or arrived in election offices after the June 9 receipt deadline.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s always troubling to see an increase,” said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation. “Ballots rejected due to lateness are almost always because they’re postmarked too late — not because they don’t arrive during the grace period.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s always troubling to see an increase,” said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation. “Ballots rejected due to lateness are almost always because they’re postmarked too late — not because they don’t arrive during the grace period.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12089274\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ballots are sorted the day after California’s primary election at the L.A. County Ballot Processing Center on June 3, 2026, in City of Industry, California.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Election officials and voting advocates attribute late ballots to changes in U.S. Postal Service practices that could result in mailpieces not being postmarked on the same day they were mailed, as well as a competitive primary for governor that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084978/california-democrats-anxious-about-wasted-votes-are-clinging-to-their-ballots\">left many voters undecided\u003c/a> until the final days of the campaign. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Election officials and voting advocates attribute late ballots to changes in U.S. Postal Service practices that could result in mailpieces not being postmarked on the same day they were mailed, as well as a competitive primary for governor that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084978/california-democrats-anxious-about-wasted-votes-are-clinging-to-their-ballots\">left many voters undecided\u003c/a> until the final days of the campaign. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Our experience in this election was that voters were waiting until the last minute to vote a lot more than what we’ve seen in past elections,” said Matt Moreles, the registrar of voters in Santa Clara County, which had the highest rate of vote-by-mail ballot rejections in the Bay Area at 2.6%. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Our experience in this election was that voters were waiting until the last minute to vote a lot more than what we’ve seen in past elections,” said Matt Moreles, the registrar of voters in Santa Clara County, which had the highest rate of vote-by-mail ballot rejections in the Bay Area at 2.6%. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In California, every voter receives a ballot in the mail by default, roughly a month before Election Day. Ballots returned in the mail must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive at the county registrar’s office \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12089268/supreme-court-ruling-allows-california-to-continue-accepting-ballots-after-election-day\">within a week\u003c/a> after that. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In California, every voter receives a ballot in the mail by default, roughly a month before Election Day. Ballots returned in the mail must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive at the county registrar’s office \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12089268/supreme-court-ruling-allows-california-to-continue-accepting-ballots-after-election-day\">within a week\u003c/a> after that. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Last year, USPS officials announced \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085378/usps-changes-ballot-drop-box-near-me-deadline-california-primary-vote-for-governor\">a change in “transportation operations”\u003c/a> that resulted in some mailpieces not arriving at central processing facilities, where postmarks are applied, on the same day they are mailed. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Last year, USPS officials announced \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085378/usps-changes-ballot-drop-box-near-me-deadline-california-primary-vote-for-governor\">a change in “transportation operations”\u003c/a> that resulted in some mailpieces not arriving at central processing facilities, where postmarks are applied, on the same day they are mailed. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As a result, a ballot dropped in a mailbox on Election Day in a community far from one of those hubs could receive a postmark the following day, making it ineligible to be counted. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>As a result, a ballot dropped in a mailbox on Election Day in a community far from one of those hubs could receive a postmark the following day, making it ineligible to be counted. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Of the 148,241 vote-by-mail ballots left uncounted in California, 93,497 were rejected for late arrival. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Of the 148,241 vote-by-mail ballots left uncounted in California, 93,497 were rejected for late arrival. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We are going to look at that as far as — is there anything we can do in our messaging to voters and in terms of educating voters about the importance of returning their ballots?” Moreles said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We are going to look at that as far as — is there anything we can do in our messaging to voters and in terms of educating voters about the importance of returning their ballots?” Moreles said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A smaller number — 52,290 — were rejected because the voter either failed to sign their ballot envelope or because that signature did not match their signature on file. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>A smaller number — 52,290 — were rejected because the voter either failed to sign their ballot envelope or because that signature did not match their signature on file. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California law allows election officials to resolve signature issues for weeks after Election Day. Under the process known as ballot “curing,” registrars are allowed to contact voters with a missing or mismatched signature and give them a chance to fix it.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>California law allows election officials to resolve signature issues for weeks after Election Day. Under the process known as ballot “curing,” registrars are allowed to contact voters with a missing or mismatched signature and give them a chance to fix it.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Voting advocates argue that ballot rejections are a far more pertinent issue for state lawmakers to address than exceedingly rare cases of voter fraud. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Voting advocates argue that ballot rejections are a far more pertinent issue for state lawmakers to address than exceedingly rare cases of voter fraud. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In each of California’s last five statewide elections, more than 100,000 residents did not have their vote counted because their ballot arrived too late or had a signature issue. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“To me it’s always disappointing to see ballot rejection happening, because it’s a lot of work to be a California voter,” Alexander said. “But the fact that you see all of these ballots being rejected is evidence of the careful work election officials undertake each election to make sure that only valid ballots cast are counted and that nobody is voting more than once.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“To me it’s always disappointing to see ballot rejection happening, because it’s a lot of work to be a California voter,” Alexander said. “But the fact that you see all of these ballots being rejected is evidence of the careful work election officials undertake each election to make sure that only valid ballots cast are counted and that nobody is voting more than once.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers are hoping that an infusion of $10 million for voter education will help persuade Californians \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12087984/three-ways-california-could-speed-up-vote-counting\">to vote early\u003c/a> and avoid ballot issues. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The budget signed by Newsom in June includes $5 million each for the secretary of state’s office and county officials for the purpose of encouraging an earlier vote.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "In the June primary, 1.7% of vote-by-mail ballots cast were rejected, in most cases because the ballot was not received on time. Election officials and advocates pointed to USPS changes and late-deciding voters.",
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"title": "California Rejected 150,000 Mail Ballots, Marking Highest Rate Since 2014 | KQED",
"description": "In the June primary, 1.7% of vote-by-mail ballots cast were rejected, in most cases because the ballot was not received on time. Election officials and advocates pointed to USPS changes and late-deciding voters.",
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"headline": "California Rejected 150,000 Mail Ballots, Marking Highest Rate Since 2014",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>California \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/electionsnews\">election\u003c/a> officials rejected nearly 150,000 ballots in the June 2 primary election, an increase of tens of thousands over recent elections, according to a report from the secretary of state’s office. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That accounted for 1.7% of all vote-by-mail ballots cast, marking the state’s highest rejection rate since 2014, according to the California Voter Foundation. Most of the rejected ballots were reported as “not received on time,” which can mean that the ballot was either postmarked after Election Day or arrived in election offices after the June 9 receipt deadline.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s always troubling to see an increase,” said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation. “Ballots rejected due to lateness are almost always because they’re postmarked too late — not because they don’t arrive during the grace period.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12089274\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CaliforniaBallotsSupremeCourtAP-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ballots are sorted the day after California’s primary election at the L.A. County Ballot Processing Center on June 3, 2026, in City of Industry, California. (Jae C. Hong/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Election officials and voting advocates attribute late ballots to changes in U.S. Postal Service practices that could result in mailpieces not being postmarked on the same day they were mailed, as well as a competitive primary for governor that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084978/california-democrats-anxious-about-wasted-votes-are-clinging-to-their-ballots\">left many voters undecided\u003c/a> until the final days of the campaign. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our experience in this election was that voters were waiting until the last minute to vote a lot more than what we’ve seen in past elections,” said Matt Moreles, the registrar of voters in Santa Clara County, which had the highest rate of vote-by-mail ballot rejections in the Bay Area at 2.6%. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, every voter receives a ballot in the mail by default, roughly a month before Election Day. Ballots returned in the mail must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive at the county registrar’s office \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12089268/supreme-court-ruling-allows-california-to-continue-accepting-ballots-after-election-day\">within a week\u003c/a> after that. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last year, USPS officials announced \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085378/usps-changes-ballot-drop-box-near-me-deadline-california-primary-vote-for-governor\">a change in “transportation operations”\u003c/a> that resulted in some mailpieces not arriving at central processing facilities, where postmarks are applied, on the same day they are mailed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As a result, a ballot dropped in a mailbox on Election Day in a community far from one of those hubs could receive a postmark the following day, making it ineligible to be counted. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Of the 148,241 vote-by-mail ballots left uncounted in California, 93,497 were rejected for late arrival. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are going to look at that as far as — is there anything we can do in our messaging to voters and in terms of educating voters about the importance of returning their ballots?” Moreles said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A smaller number — 52,290 — were rejected because the voter either failed to sign their ballot envelope or because that signature did not match their signature on file. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California law allows election officials to resolve signature issues for weeks after Election Day. Under the process known as ballot “curing,” registrars are allowed to contact voters with a missing or mismatched signature and give them a chance to fix it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Voting advocates argue that ballot rejections are a far more pertinent issue for state lawmakers to address than exceedingly rare cases of voter fraud. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1320\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12070782\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/GettyImages-2256657926-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks to the press on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos on Jan. 20, 2026. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In each of California’s last five statewide elections, more than 100,000 residents did not have their vote counted because their ballot arrived too late or had a signature issue. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“To me it’s always disappointing to see ballot rejection happening, because it’s a lot of work to be a California voter,” Alexander said. “But the fact that you see all of these ballots being rejected is evidence of the careful work election officials undertake each election to make sure that only valid ballots cast are counted and that nobody is voting more than once.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers are hoping that an infusion of $10 million for voter education will help persuade Californians \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12087984/three-ways-california-could-speed-up-vote-counting\">to vote early\u003c/a> and avoid ballot issues. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The budget signed by Newsom in June includes $5 million each for the secretary of state’s office and county officials for the purpose of encouraging an earlier vote.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "san-francisco-voters-will-vote-again-on-the-great-highway-this-november",
"title": "San Francisco Voters Will Vote, Again, on the Great Highway This November",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Voters Will Vote, Again, on the Great Highway This November | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>San Francisco voters will once again be asked to decide whether to keep \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12079238/one-year-of-san-franciscos-controversial-beachside-park\">cars off of the Great Highway\u003c/a>. A proposal to reopen the westside road to vehicles on weekdays has officially qualified for the ballot.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The election this November will be the third time in nearly four years that the Great Highway debate has gone before voters. The measure would put cars back on the Great Highway on weekdays and keep it open as a park on weekends, and is fueled by a group of residents who have not given up the battle to bring vehicles back after years of debate and multiple losses at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This time, they say, is different. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Now that San Franciscans have experienced both the compromise and the 24/7 closure, I believe that voters can fully weigh the pros and cons at the ballot box,” said Supervisor Alan Wong, who supports reopening the Great Highway to vehicles on weekdays. “At the end of the day, I have to prioritize those commuting to work, home or school over weekday recreational use of the highway.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069187\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">District 4 Supervisor Alan Wong points to a map highlighting traffic incidents in 2024 and 2025 in the Sunset District during a press conference about the Great Highway at City Hall in San Francisco on Jan. 8, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But critics of the proposal say it’s resurfacing an outdated idea that voters have already soundly rejected.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The voters of San Francisco already voted to allow San Franciscans to adapt to climate change in a positive and joyful way that is to the benefit of all,” Supervisor Myrna Melgar said in a statement. “This cynical and expensive attempt to destroy a beautiful park will fail.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco closed a 2-mile stretch of the Great Highway during the pandemic to allow more space for recreation and social distancing. It quickly amassed fans from residents around the Bay Area who flocked to the open road to bike, skateboard or stroll around.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2024, voters citywide passed Proposition K, permanently removing cars from the road, which has since been converted into a beachside park called Sunset Dunes. But the majority of voters who live closest to the westside thoroughfare voted against it, and efforts to put cars back on the Great Highway have continued to dominate local politics in the residential, car-heavy Sunset District. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2025, voters in the district \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12055340/san-francisco-supervisor-joel-engardio-braces-for-tuesday-recall-vote\">recalled former Sunset Supervisor Joel Engardio\u003c/a>, who supported Sunset Dunes. A small group of residents also filed a lawsuit challenging Proposition K. In January, a Superior Court judge \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068774/san-francisco-judge-rejects-great-highway-lawsuit\">dismissed all four claims\u003c/a> in the case. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, Wong, who was born and raised in the neighborhood, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069580/great-highway-ballot-measure-proposal-appears-doomed-for-june-election\">failed to get enough support\u003c/a> from the Board of Supervisors to put a similar measure on the ballot. Supervisors Connie Chan and Chyanne Chen backed Wong’s proposal. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Residents fed up with the road closure took up the cause, and this week confirmed they gathered enough signatures to put the issue before voters again this November. Those who want to see Sunset Dunes closed on weekdays have said that the change has led to traffic congestion on the westside. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The anger is still out there. The unrest is still out there. People that live here are suffering because they can’t use the road,” said Albert Chow, a small business owner in the Sunset who led the recall effort and recently ran unsuccessfully to be the district’s supervisor. “There’s going to be more development here. There’s going to be more density here. Our public transit is not keeping up, yet we are losing roads.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A report from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, however, found that changes to commuter traffic have been minimal, and the city has moved to adapt traffic lights to better support the flow of cars on nearby avenues. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s not a major traffic difference, despite the fact that we have created one of the city’s most visited park spaces,” said Lucas Lux, president of Friends of Sunset Dunes, which is opposing the measure in order to keep the park open permanently. “Converting this space into a park has been a huge success.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079376\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign for Sunset Dunes, a park on the former Great Highway roadway, in San Francisco’s Sunset neighborhood on April 9, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Other park supporters point out how the lower portion of the Great Highway is already closed due to coastal erosion, and say the city must adapt the road for the changing coastline. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A more recent analysis from SFMTA found that this November’s ballot measure to allow cars back onto the Great Highway during weekdays would cost around $14 million. Much of the price tag would go toward fixing the street lights and signage that have not been used since Sunset Dunes opened. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The measure to close Sunset Dunes on weekdays is already facing opposition from several neighborhood groups and city leaders, including a majority of the Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Spending nearly $20 million we don’t have is irresponsible,” Supervisor Stephen Sherrill said in a statement. “Let’s stay focused on clean and safe streets, and on addressing the massive housing crisis in our city.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Supporters of the measure say it offers the neighborhood a compromise after years of fighting over the closed road. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12055055\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Albert Chow, a business owner of Great Wall in the Sunset District, walks through Taraval Street in San Francisco on Sept. 3, 2025. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re not trying to take it all away from the park. There are ways to make this beautiful piece of land work for everybody,” Chow said. “It doesn’t make me happy that we are having this fight, but it wasn’t thoroughly thought out as to all of the unintended consequences.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As for the price tag for reopening the roadway to cars, Chow said, “I hate to say it, too bad.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sunset Dunes supporters, meanwhile, say there is no compromise to be had, because clearing the road for cars only some days would mean removing the public art, skatepark and other installations that now scatter the former road. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To defeat the measure, Lux said that supporters of Sunset Dunes will focus on “getting facts” before voters in the upcoming election cycle. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact is, this measure would close and demolish the park in order to reconstruct a roadway that voters already understand is failing,” Lux said. “We want to make sure that voters understand their choice. They have this one piece of land. Do they want it to be a successful park that is better for our people and environment, or do they want to destroy that park and turn it back into a roadway for a small group of people who have no demonstrable concerns other than anger?”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The election this November will be the third time in nearly four years that the Great Highway debate has gone before voters. The measure would put cars back on the Great Highway on weekdays and keep it open as a park on weekends, and is fueled by a group of residents who have not given up the battle to bring vehicles back after years of debate and multiple losses at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The election this November will be the third time in nearly four years that the Great Highway debate has gone before voters. The measure would put cars back on the Great Highway on weekdays and keep it open as a park on weekends, and is fueled by a group of residents who have not given up the battle to bring vehicles back after years of debate and multiple losses at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Now that San Franciscans have experienced both the compromise and the 24/7 closure, I believe that voters can fully weigh the pros and cons at the ballot box,” said Supervisor Alan Wong, who supports reopening the Great Highway to vehicles on weekdays. “At the end of the day, I have to prioritize those commuting to work, home or school over weekday recreational use of the highway.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Now that San Franciscans have experienced both the compromise and the 24/7 closure, I believe that voters can fully weigh the pros and cons at the ballot box,” said Supervisor Alan Wong, who supports reopening the Great Highway to vehicles on weekdays. “At the end of the day, I have to prioritize those commuting to work, home or school over weekday recreational use of the highway.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069187\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">District 4 Supervisor Alan Wong points to a map highlighting traffic incidents in 2024 and 2025 in the Sunset District during a press conference about the Great Highway at City Hall in San Francisco on Jan. 8, 2026.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But critics of the proposal say it’s resurfacing an outdated idea that voters have already soundly rejected.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The voters of San Francisco already voted to allow San Franciscans to adapt to climate change in a positive and joyful way that is to the benefit of all,” Supervisor Myrna Melgar said in a statement. “This cynical and expensive attempt to destroy a beautiful park will fail.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“The voters of San Francisco already voted to allow San Franciscans to adapt to climate change in a positive and joyful way that is to the benefit of all,” Supervisor Myrna Melgar said in a statement. “This cynical and expensive attempt to destroy a beautiful park will fail.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco closed a 2-mile stretch of the Great Highway during the pandemic to allow more space for recreation and social distancing. It quickly amassed fans from residents around the Bay Area who flocked to the open road to bike, skateboard or stroll around.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco closed a 2-mile stretch of the Great Highway during the pandemic to allow more space for recreation and social distancing. It quickly amassed fans from residents around the Bay Area who flocked to the open road to bike, skateboard or stroll around.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In 2024, voters citywide passed Proposition K, permanently removing cars from the road, which has since been converted into a beachside park called Sunset Dunes. But the majority of voters who live closest to the westside thoroughfare voted against it, and efforts to put cars back on the Great Highway have continued to dominate local politics in the residential, car-heavy Sunset District. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In 2024, voters citywide passed Proposition K, permanently removing cars from the road, which has since been converted into a beachside park called Sunset Dunes. But the majority of voters who live closest to the westside thoroughfare voted against it, and efforts to put cars back on the Great Highway have continued to dominate local politics in the residential, car-heavy Sunset District. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In 2025, voters in the district \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12055340/san-francisco-supervisor-joel-engardio-braces-for-tuesday-recall-vote\">recalled former Sunset Supervisor Joel Engardio\u003c/a>, who supported Sunset Dunes. A small group of residents also filed a lawsuit challenging Proposition K. In January, a Superior Court judge \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068774/san-francisco-judge-rejects-great-highway-lawsuit\">dismissed all four claims\u003c/a> in the case. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, Wong, who was born and raised in the neighborhood, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069580/great-highway-ballot-measure-proposal-appears-doomed-for-june-election\">failed to get enough support\u003c/a> from the Board of Supervisors to put a similar measure on the ballot. Supervisors Connie Chan and Chyanne Chen backed Wong’s proposal. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, Wong, who was born and raised in the neighborhood, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069580/great-highway-ballot-measure-proposal-appears-doomed-for-june-election\">failed to get enough support\u003c/a> from the Board of Supervisors to put a similar measure on the ballot. Supervisors Connie Chan and Chyanne Chen backed Wong’s proposal. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Residents fed up with the road closure took up the cause, and this week confirmed they gathered enough signatures to put the issue before voters again this November. Those who want to see Sunset Dunes closed on weekdays have said that the change has led to traffic congestion on the westside. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Residents fed up with the road closure took up the cause, and this week confirmed they gathered enough signatures to put the issue before voters again this November. Those who want to see Sunset Dunes closed on weekdays have said that the change has led to traffic congestion on the westside. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The anger is still out there. The unrest is still out there. People that live here are suffering because they can’t use the road,” said Albert Chow, a small business owner in the Sunset who led the recall effort and recently ran unsuccessfully to be the district’s supervisor. “There’s going to be more development here. There’s going to be more density here. Our public transit is not keeping up, yet we are losing roads.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“The anger is still out there. The unrest is still out there. People that live here are suffering because they can’t use the road,” said Albert Chow, a small business owner in the Sunset who led the recall effort and recently ran unsuccessfully to be the district’s supervisor. “There’s going to be more development here. There’s going to be more density here. Our public transit is not keeping up, yet we are losing roads.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A report from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, however, found that changes to commuter traffic have been minimal, and the city has moved to adapt traffic lights to better support the flow of cars on nearby avenues. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A report from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, however, found that changes to commuter traffic have been minimal, and the city has moved to adapt traffic lights to better support the flow of cars on nearby avenues. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There’s not a major traffic difference, despite the fact that we have created one of the city’s most visited park spaces,” said Lucas Lux, president of Friends of Sunset Dunes, which is opposing the measure in order to keep the park open permanently. “Converting this space into a park has been a huge success.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“There’s not a major traffic difference, despite the fact that we have created one of the city’s most visited park spaces,” said Lucas Lux, president of Friends of Sunset Dunes, which is opposing the measure in order to keep the park open permanently. “Converting this space into a park has been a huge success.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079376\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign for Sunset Dunes, a park on the former Great Highway roadway, in San Francisco’s Sunset neighborhood on April 9, 2026.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Other park supporters point out how the lower portion of the Great Highway is already closed due to coastal erosion, and say the city must adapt the road for the changing coastline. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Other park supporters point out how the lower portion of the Great Highway is already closed due to coastal erosion, and say the city must adapt the road for the changing coastline. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A more recent analysis from SFMTA found that this November’s ballot measure to allow cars back onto the Great Highway during weekdays would cost around $14 million. Much of the price tag would go toward fixing the street lights and signage that have not been used since Sunset Dunes opened. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A more recent analysis from SFMTA found that this November’s ballot measure to allow cars back onto the Great Highway during weekdays would cost around $14 million. Much of the price tag would go toward fixing the street lights and signage that have not been used since Sunset Dunes opened. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The measure to close Sunset Dunes on weekdays is already facing opposition from several neighborhood groups and city leaders, including a majority of the Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Spending nearly $20 million we don’t have is irresponsible,” Supervisor Stephen Sherrill said in a statement. “Let’s stay focused on clean and safe streets, and on addressing the massive housing crisis in our city.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Spending nearly $20 million we don’t have is irresponsible,” Supervisor Stephen Sherrill said in a statement. “Let’s stay focused on clean and safe streets, and on addressing the massive housing crisis in our city.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Supporters of the measure say it offers the neighborhood a compromise after years of fighting over the closed road. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Supporters of the measure say it offers the neighborhood a compromise after years of fighting over the closed road. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12055055\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Albert Chow, a business owner of Great Wall in the Sunset District, walks through Taraval Street in San Francisco on Sept. 3, 2025. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We’re not trying to take it all away from the park. There are ways to make this beautiful piece of land work for everybody,” Chow said. “It doesn’t make me happy that we are having this fight, but it wasn’t thoroughly thought out as to all of the unintended consequences.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We’re not trying to take it all away from the park. There are ways to make this beautiful piece of land work for everybody,” Chow said. “It doesn’t make me happy that we are having this fight, but it wasn’t thoroughly thought out as to all of the unintended consequences.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As for the price tag for reopening the roadway to cars, Chow said, “I hate to say it, too bad.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>As for the price tag for reopening the roadway to cars, Chow said, “I hate to say it, too bad.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sunset Dunes supporters, meanwhile, say there is no compromise to be had, because clearing the road for cars only some days would mean removing the public art, skatepark and other installations that now scatter the former road. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Sunset Dunes supporters, meanwhile, say there is no compromise to be had, because clearing the road for cars only some days would mean removing the public art, skatepark and other installations that now scatter the former road. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To defeat the measure, Lux said that supporters of Sunset Dunes will focus on “getting facts” before voters in the upcoming election cycle. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The fact is, this measure would close and demolish the park in order to reconstruct a roadway that voters already understand is failing,” Lux said. “We want to make sure that voters understand their choice. They have this one piece of land. Do they want it to be a successful park that is better for our people and environment, or do they want to destroy that park and turn it back into a roadway for a small group of people who have no demonstrable concerns other than anger?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“The fact is, this measure would close and demolish the park in order to reconstruct a roadway that voters already understand is failing,” Lux said. “We want to make sure that voters understand their choice. They have this one piece of land. Do they want it to be a successful park that is better for our people and environment, or do they want to destroy that park and turn it back into a roadway for a small group of people who have no demonstrable concerns other than anger?”\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "A proposal to reopen the westside road to vehicles on weekdays has officially qualified for the ballot.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>San Francisco voters will once again be asked to decide whether to keep \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12079238/one-year-of-san-franciscos-controversial-beachside-park\">cars off of the Great Highway\u003c/a>. A proposal to reopen the westside road to vehicles on weekdays has officially qualified for the ballot.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The election this November will be the third time in nearly four years that the Great Highway debate has gone before voters. The measure would put cars back on the Great Highway on weekdays and keep it open as a park on weekends, and is fueled by a group of residents who have not given up the battle to bring vehicles back after years of debate and multiple losses at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This time, they say, is different. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Now that San Franciscans have experienced both the compromise and the 24/7 closure, I believe that voters can fully weigh the pros and cons at the ballot box,” said Supervisor Alan Wong, who supports reopening the Great Highway to vehicles on weekdays. “At the end of the day, I have to prioritize those commuting to work, home or school over weekday recreational use of the highway.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069187\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260108-AlanWongGreatHighway-08-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">District 4 Supervisor Alan Wong points to a map highlighting traffic incidents in 2024 and 2025 in the Sunset District during a press conference about the Great Highway at City Hall in San Francisco on Jan. 8, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But critics of the proposal say it’s resurfacing an outdated idea that voters have already soundly rejected.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The voters of San Francisco already voted to allow San Franciscans to adapt to climate change in a positive and joyful way that is to the benefit of all,” Supervisor Myrna Melgar said in a statement. “This cynical and expensive attempt to destroy a beautiful park will fail.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco closed a 2-mile stretch of the Great Highway during the pandemic to allow more space for recreation and social distancing. It quickly amassed fans from residents around the Bay Area who flocked to the open road to bike, skateboard or stroll around.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2024, voters citywide passed Proposition K, permanently removing cars from the road, which has since been converted into a beachside park called Sunset Dunes. But the majority of voters who live closest to the westside thoroughfare voted against it, and efforts to put cars back on the Great Highway have continued to dominate local politics in the residential, car-heavy Sunset District. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2025, voters in the district \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12055340/san-francisco-supervisor-joel-engardio-braces-for-tuesday-recall-vote\">recalled former Sunset Supervisor Joel Engardio\u003c/a>, who supported Sunset Dunes. A small group of residents also filed a lawsuit challenging Proposition K. In January, a Superior Court judge \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068774/san-francisco-judge-rejects-great-highway-lawsuit\">dismissed all four claims\u003c/a> in the case. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, Wong, who was born and raised in the neighborhood, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069580/great-highway-ballot-measure-proposal-appears-doomed-for-june-election\">failed to get enough support\u003c/a> from the Board of Supervisors to put a similar measure on the ballot. Supervisors Connie Chan and Chyanne Chen backed Wong’s proposal. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Residents fed up with the road closure took up the cause, and this week confirmed they gathered enough signatures to put the issue before voters again this November. Those who want to see Sunset Dunes closed on weekdays have said that the change has led to traffic congestion on the westside. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The anger is still out there. The unrest is still out there. People that live here are suffering because they can’t use the road,” said Albert Chow, a small business owner in the Sunset who led the recall effort and recently ran unsuccessfully to be the district’s supervisor. “There’s going to be more development here. There’s going to be more density here. Our public transit is not keeping up, yet we are losing roads.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A report from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, however, found that changes to commuter traffic have been minimal, and the city has moved to adapt traffic lights to better support the flow of cars on nearby avenues. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s not a major traffic difference, despite the fact that we have created one of the city’s most visited park spaces,” said Lucas Lux, president of Friends of Sunset Dunes, which is opposing the measure in order to keep the park open permanently. “Converting this space into a park has been a huge success.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079376\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260409-SunsetDunesAnniversary-14-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign for Sunset Dunes, a park on the former Great Highway roadway, in San Francisco’s Sunset neighborhood on April 9, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Other park supporters point out how the lower portion of the Great Highway is already closed due to coastal erosion, and say the city must adapt the road for the changing coastline. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A more recent analysis from SFMTA found that this November’s ballot measure to allow cars back onto the Great Highway during weekdays would cost around $14 million. Much of the price tag would go toward fixing the street lights and signage that have not been used since Sunset Dunes opened. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The measure to close Sunset Dunes on weekdays is already facing opposition from several neighborhood groups and city leaders, including a majority of the Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Spending nearly $20 million we don’t have is irresponsible,” Supervisor Stephen Sherrill said in a statement. “Let’s stay focused on clean and safe streets, and on addressing the massive housing crisis in our city.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Supporters of the measure say it offers the neighborhood a compromise after years of fighting over the closed road. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12055055\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250903-SUNSETCHINESERECALL00096_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Albert Chow, a business owner of Great Wall in the Sunset District, walks through Taraval Street in San Francisco on Sept. 3, 2025. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re not trying to take it all away from the park. There are ways to make this beautiful piece of land work for everybody,” Chow said. “It doesn’t make me happy that we are having this fight, but it wasn’t thoroughly thought out as to all of the unintended consequences.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As for the price tag for reopening the roadway to cars, Chow said, “I hate to say it, too bad.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sunset Dunes supporters, meanwhile, say there is no compromise to be had, because clearing the road for cars only some days would mean removing the public art, skatepark and other installations that now scatter the former road. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To defeat the measure, Lux said that supporters of Sunset Dunes will focus on “getting facts” before voters in the upcoming election cycle. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact is, this measure would close and demolish the park in order to reconstruct a roadway that voters already understand is failing,” Lux said. “We want to make sure that voters understand their choice. They have this one piece of land. Do they want it to be a successful park that is better for our people and environment, or do they want to destroy that park and turn it back into a roadway for a small group of people who have no demonstrable concerns other than anger?”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
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"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
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"marketplace": {
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"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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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": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
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"planet-money": {
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"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
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"politicalbreakdown": {
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"title": "Political Breakdown",
"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"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.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
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"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"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.",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Possible-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"pri-the-world": {
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"title": "PRI's The World: Latest Edition",
"info": "Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-World-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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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": {
"id": "reveal",
"title": "Reveal",
"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
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},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 16
},
"link": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
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},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
"title": "Science Friday",
"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
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},
"snap-judgment": {
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