Gov. Gavin Newsom, on Monday, signed two bills aimed at cracking down on doctors who write fraudulent medical exemptions for kids vaccines. Asm. Todd Gloria, D-San Diego, rolled out a last minute bill that aims to end a labor dispute over San Diego’s long-delayed Pure Water project. Asm. Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, AB5 seeks to make it harder for companies to classify employees as independent contractors, will that help or hurt gig workers? Plus, some San Diego college students and educators are getting free immigration legal services. And, “Kiss My Aztec!,” a new musical by actor John Leguizamo at the La Jolla Playhouse, uses humor to unpack the difficult period when Spaniards invaded the Aztec Empire in the 16th century. Also, despite protests from conservative groups, Chula Vista is moving forward with plans to host Drag Queen Story Hour on Tuesday.

California’s Republican Party is looking for ways to send delegates to the GOP National Convention even if President Trump does not appear on the state’s primary ballot because of a new state law. State lawmakers are taking the first steps to discuss ways to give descendants of enslaved people reparations. Amid high unemployment and hot weather, rideshare drivers in the Imperial Valley try to patch together a living in the “gig” economy. A new book explores racism and inequality in our society, challenging the way many think about it. Churches meet in some unconventional places these days, from strip malls to breweries to former nightclubs. But what about a church where the U.S.-Mexico border fence runs into the Pacific Ocean?

A heat wave off the west coast is posing a danger to sea life, including here in San Diego. Also, cockroaches, mold and broken windows are just a few of the problems one refugee family faced when relocated to housing in City Heights, and Midday Edition is launching a new monthly movie segment with KPBS arts and culture reporter Beth Accomando.

Congresswoman Susan Davis is stepping down after ten terms. Also, a government report says family separation at the border left children traumatized, SANDAG looks at how to distribute 171,000 new homes throughout the county, local representatives are urging Congress to say no to drilling off the California coast and and San Diego bluegrass band Prairie Sky performs in the KPBS studio in the final installment of the Midday Edition summer music series.

The Pentagon is shifting money from military projects to help fund Trump’s border wall. Also, two small agencies want a separation from the San Diego County Water Authority, the annual amount of plastic sediment found in the Santa Barbara Basin has doubled every 15 years since the 1940s, finding love after Alzheimer’s takes a spouse, and a Central Valley Mariachi releases her debut album as she sets off to study at Harvard.

Officials say 34 people died after a diving boat caught fire off the Southern California coast, officials say they have suspended search efforts for survivors. Also, The San Diego Union-Tribune reports there were 437 hate crimes in San Diego County over the past five years, a tech entrepreneur is now running the California DMV, the state is facing a shortage of physicians, Cal Fire is preparing for the two worst months for wildfires, a new book by a science journalist details the different ways the planet could be destroyed, and the Radio Silence collective talk about their new feature film, “Ready or Not.”

The fight over rights and benefits for workers in the gig economy is heating up at the state Capitol. Also, the Horrible Imaginings Film Festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary this weekend and a radio station in the Central Valley stands as a cultural “town hall” for the local Hmong and Punjabi-speaking communities.

Reps. Mike Levin and Juan Vargas visited border facilities in San Diego to get a first hand look at the conditions inside them. Also, Grossmont Union High School District expels black students seven times more often than other local school districts. San Diego’s climate goals are clouded by national politics, the San Diego International Airport is working to bolster its facilities ahead of rising ocean levels, a photography exhibit looks at black life in Southern California in the second half of the 20th Century, and the bi-national band La Diabla combines traditional cumbia music with the spirit of Tijuana.

A new report on the conditions experienced by thousands of asylum seekers in US immigration detention centers finds that large percentages of the immigrants report substandard, unsanitary conditions including spoiled food, no room to sleep, and no access to showers. Also, a study shows that San Diego senior centers are unprepared for a growing over 65 population, the U.S. Air Force says social media helped prompt action to clean up mold at one of its bases, can the Yampa River survive in a rapidly drying West, the New York Times put together a Spotify playlist filled with California-inspired music after asking readers about their favorite California songs, and the San Diego REP and Amigos Del REP host the Third Annual Latinx play festival.

The decision to hold a drugmaker accountable for the cost of opioid addiction is being closely watched by other plaintiffs including the city of San Diego which has a lawsuit against Purdue Pharma and others. Also, fires burning through the Amazon rainforest continue to alarm the international community, one organization working to preserve the area is based in San Diego. Horse deaths are down at Del Mar but so is attendance, nearly 50% of young adult Californians live with their parents, a San Diego workshop is offering safe spaces to talk about racism and hate, and San Diego’s Latinx New Play Festival returns.