California Insider

RV encampments have become fixed parts of Los Angeles, especially in industrial areas where they sit for long stretches without intervention. What looks like a line of parked RVs carries real effects for the blocks around them, including steady waste and a growing pull on emergency crews. We discuss with Barry Coe, former Los Angeles city commissioner, about what keeps these RVs in place and how b...

Freight theft is rising in California and hitting the state’s supply chain in ways most people don’t see. Loads disappear with a level of planning that signals a shift in how these crimes are carried out. In this episode, Verisk CargoNet Vice President of Operations Keith Lewis and retired Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department cargo theft detective Gerardo Pachuca explain what’s driving this cha...

Silicon Valley has long been the launchpad for new tech companies, but conditions for young entrepreneurs are shifting. Starting and growing a company there now comes with limits that land much earlier than they used to. In this episode, Aman Verjee, founder of Practical Venture Capital, walks us through how this shift took hold and what it could mean for the Valley going forward.

California once made rooftop solar a smart investment for homeowners. After new rules took effect, that balance changed almost overnight. In this episode, Siyamak sits down with Bernadette Del Chiaro, senior vice president for California at the Environmental Working Group, and Johnny Graham, CEO of Pacific United Power, to examine how the state’s new policy is changing the way solar works for home...

California’s economy keeps growing, but that growth looks different across the state. Some areas are thriving, while others feel the strain—a shift we discuss with Jerry Nickelsburg, Professor Emeritus at the UCLA Anderson School of Management; Mark Schniepp, Director of the California Economic Forecast in Santa Barbara; and Kymberlee Dildine from the Central California Food Bank to understand whe...

California is drawing a line on what children are fed in public schools. A new law confronts the rise of industrial additives that have come to define many of the meals served to students. In this episode, Bernadette Del Chiaro, Senior Vice President of the Environmental Working Group, explains how these additives made their way into lunch trays and what California’s bold move could signal for the...

Many Californians are realizing after wildfires that their insurance doesn’t cover what it costs to rebuild. In this episode, industry experts Rex Frazier and Robert Anderson explain how shifts in state rules and market practices left many homes underinsured. They also show how small choices made when buying a policy can determine whether a family recovers or faces lasting loss, and what this mean...

Water in California is getting more expensive, and the reasons go beyond drought. Rising maintenance costs are consuming budgets once reserved for future projects, leaving districts to choose between higher bills or deferred upgrades. In this episode, we speak with District 6 Director Tony Estremera and EMWD General Manager Joe Mouawad about the financial strain behind California’s water system an...

California’s community colleges have been confronting a growing wave of enrollment fraud. Through stolen identities, fake students are collecting financial aid meant for real applicants. In this episode, N2N Services CEO Kiran Kodithala explains how large-scale fraud networks infiltrated the system and what investigators are now uncovering behind the surge. Views expressed in this video are the op...

California’s Proposition 50 would challenge the once-a-decade rule for drawing congressional maps. While some lawmakers call it a necessary response to partisan redistricting in other states, critics warn it could weaken protections against partisan gerrymandering in the state and shift congressional seat representation. In this episode, former state Assemblyman Mike Gatto, Democratic strategist M...

California’s high-speed rail has been in the works for years, but the story behind its delays is more complex than it looks. In this episode, developer Elaine Culotti talks about why progress has slowed and what’s already taking shape. We dive deeper into what the project shows about how California builds infrastructure and why finishing the project has become so difficult. Views expressed in this...

Los Angeles County’s eviction process has become a drawn-out struggle over how property rights are enforced. Real estate attorney Avi Sinai shares what he’s seeing in court as legal delays and expanding tenant protections have changed how landlords and renters deal with each other across the county. Property owner Thomas Maimone recounts how his family’s warehouse in Altadena was taken over by ten...

California’s electric vehicle market is starting to shift as key incentives come to an end. In this episode, we speak with University of California–Davis professor Daniel Sperling, one of the driving forces behind the state’s clean-car policies, about how reduced support is impacting the market and what it could mean for California’s clean-car goals. Views expressed in this video are the opinions...

California has always found ways to adapt. As wildfires are expected to continue to increase, the need for practical solutions is growing. Brien Seeley, an aviation expert and inventor, explains how existing electric flight technology could work together in a new way to fight fires faster, cleaner, and at a much lower cost than current methods. Views expressed in this video are the opinions of the...

California’s beekeeping industry is struggling to keep its colonies alive. More than half of all honeybee colonies in the United States died last year, one of the worst losses in decades. With cheap blended honey driving down prices and policies making it harder to keep operations sustainable, many keepers are reaching a breaking point. In this episode, third-generation beekeeper Ryan Burris break...

Foreign influence is reaching deeper into California than most realize. In Arcadia, even a local city council campaign was caught in it. In this episode, investigative reporter Joshua Philipp reveals how the Chinese Communist Party extends its presence here and what that could mean for our state. Views expressed in this video are the opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect t...

Proposition 13 has defined California’s property tax system for decades, limiting increases and setting strict rules for local taxes. A court ruling in 2017 weakened that standard by allowing some measures to pass with only a simple majority. More recently, Proposition 19, approved by voters in 2020, brought changes to inherited property taxes, creating new costs for families. In this episode, Sus...

Pipelines that once carried most of California’s oil are now running close to empty. As production falls, refineries face the risk of shutdown, which could raise fuel costs and drive up the price of everyday goods. Assemblymember Stan Ellis, University of Southern California Professor Michael Mische, Skip York of Turner Mason & Company, and University of California–Berkeley Professor James Rec...

Oakland is facing a surge in illegal dumping that is leaving neighborhoods buried in debris and residents feeling abandoned. The problem is not just about appearances, but is changing how the people of Oakland live and weakening confidence in city services. Entrepreneur and former probation officer Ansel Troy has been documenting what happens when enforcement is limited, while Vincent Williams, co...

Los Angeles County and its schools are now facing billions in legal settlements as victims come forward about abuse they suffered decades ago. A 2019 law gave them new time to file claims that were once closed. Former Republican state senator John Moorlach joins California Insider to explain how this law came about and why its financial impact could spread to schools and local budgets across Calif...

California is closing its fifth state prison. Officials point to lower inmate numbers, but the reasons behind the decline are contested, with effects already visible in local jails and courtrooms. Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco says crime hasn’t dropped—it has been shifted out of view through legal changes. San Francisco public defender Jared Rudolph argues the system is stepping back from punishme...

Northern California ranchers are facing nightly wolf attacks and cattle losses that UC Davis researchers estimate can reach $162,000 for each wolf every year. In this episode, Rick Roberti, President of the California Cattlemen’s Association, Paul Roen, Chair of the Sierra County Board of Supervisors, and Michael Fisher, Sierra County Sheriff-Coroner discuss how the crisis is forcing hard choices...

Gas prices in California are already high. With Valero's Benicia refinery shutting down and more production shifting overseas, the state's fuel supply is entering a more fragile phase. What could this mean for the state’s ability to keep up with demand? This episode features Skip York, Chief Energy Strategist at Turner, Mason & Company; Mike Ariza, former Senior Refinery Controller at Valero;...

In California’s vineyards, entire harvests are going unpicked, something few imagined possible in one of the world’s top wine regions. For many growers, it means seasons of work with no return and families forced to decide whether the next generation will remain in farming. Stuart Spencer, owner and winemaker at Lodi Wine, explains the hard choices facing growers and what could still secure a futu...

Months after the LA fires, rebuilding remains uncertain. Many homeowners are discovering that the help they expected isn’t enough, and the process of starting over has become far more complicated than they imagined. In this panel, Farid Yaghoubtil, founding partner at DTLA Law Group, Gary Mkrtichyan, CEO of Opus Builders, and Ken Calligar, CEO of RSG 3D, discuss the realities on the ground and wha...