(The Center Square) - A legislative committee has rejected a bipartisan bill to end a loophole in California’s mental health diversion program that allows mentally ill individuals charged with domestic violence, human trafficking or assault of a child under age 8 resulting in the child's death, to seek mental health treatment instead of facing criminal charges and prison time. 

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(The Center Square) — The cost of providing Medi-Cal to each illegal immigrant beneficiary is rising 10-15% per year, according to a new report from the state-funded Legislative Analyst’s Office. This means even if California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to stop new enrollment in Medi-Cal by illegal immigrants in 2026 is adopted, costs for the program’s existing approximately 1.7 million illegal immigrants will likely continue to rise, as reflected in the governor’s May budget revision. 

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(The Center Square) - The San Francisco Unified School District delayed its plans to adopt “equity” grading at 14 schools after national, bipartisan backlash over the proposal to eliminate grading for attendance, punctuality, homework and quizzes, and grade only on a final exam that can be taken multiple times. The new scheme, promoted unilaterally by Superintendent Maria Su without vote from the Board of Education, would have awarded an “A” grade for 80%, with a passing “C” grade at 41%. 

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(The Center Square) - The U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced it is investigating California for violating Title IX by allowing males to participate in female student sports. “Title IX exists to protect women and girls in education,” said Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general for Civil Rights. “It is perverse to allow males to compete against girls, invade their private spaces, and take their trophies.” 

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(The Center Square) – In April, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced his lawsuit against the Trump administration to block cuts to the AmeriCorps, while saying he supports California’s paid “service” program, in which individuals get paid for giving their time to provide “community service” such as “taking climate action.” Now, Newsom is scaling back his plans for the program’s growth as the state faces a $11.9 billion budget shortfall and Republicans criticize the program as a paid, political jobs program unfairly described as volunteering. 

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(The Center Square) - U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced he is holding a vote to overturn California’s 2035 ban on the sale of new gas-powered cars, which has been adopted by 11 other states and the District of Columbia, making up 40% of the American market. The vote would also impact other California emissions rules approved in the last days of the Biden administration, including the state’s diesel-engine and zero-emission heavy-duty-vehicle requirements. 

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(The Center Square) - A 17-state-and-territory coalition led by California, Washington and Colorado is suing the Trump administration to maintain access to $5 billion in EV charger funding passed by Congress in 2021 but put on hold by the current administration. A majority of the coalition, including lawsuit leaders California and Washington, has failed to build any chargers using $3.3 billion in awarded funds over the past four fiscal years. 

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(The Center Square) - California Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed a $7.5 billion federal film tax credit as part of an offer to work with the President Donald Trump’s administration to “Make America Film Again.” Just days before, Trump had threatened to place a 100% tariff on films made abroad, but has since walked back that option. “California built the film industry — and we’re ready to bring even more jobs home,” said Newsom on X. 

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(The Center Square) - A new analysis has found California gasoline prices could rise to $8.44 per gallon by the end of 2026 after the pending closure of two refineries — one-fifth of the state’s refining capacity — and the onset of new state regulations. California gas prices are the nation’s highest, at $4.78 per gallon for regular-grade gasoline Tuesday, per AAA. 

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(The Center Square) – Mayor Lisa Brown unveiled an overhaul of Spokane’s homelessness strategy Thursday, pitting the city council’s progressive majority and conservative minority against each other once again. The proposals follow the Washington State Supreme Court striking down one of the city’s camping bans in April. The high court ruled that the citizen-led effort fell outside the scope of an initiative, so the conservatives tried to restore it with a council vote, but the majority declined. 

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