If you go by the latest projections from the Legislative Analyst Office, California’s budget deficit is getting worse. The LAO, which provides nonpartisan fiscal advice to California lawmakers, revised its forecast from a $58 billion gap to a now $73 billion gap. The numbers follow Gov. Newsom’s different budget analysis from the Dept. of Finance - which last month projected a lesser shortfall of $38 billion. No matter who is right, lawmakers and the Governor are going to need to make some serious decisions ahead of the May Revise. Joining us to discuss are H.D. Palmer, Deputy Director for External Affairs with the Department of Finance, and CapRadio State Politics Reporter Nicole Nixon.

With the primary election just two weeks away, voters in Placer County have more opportunities to cast their ballot, thanks to the recent adoption of the state’s Voter’s Choice Act. Placer County Registrar of Voters Ryan Ronco explains what some of the major changes are, and how his office is preparing to make sure elections are both well-staffed and safe.

In 1998 the body of Matthew Shepard was found severely beaten and tied to a fence post in the Wyoming town of Laramie. The 21-year-old college student’s murder became one of the most notorious anti-gay hate crimes in American history and spawned a wave of activism that continues today. Activism that also includes art. The Laramie Project is a play written by Moisés Kaufman and chronicles the reaction to Shepard’s murder by the rural American community. The play draws on hundreds of interviews with Laramie residents and news reports. The latest production is directed by Scott Ebersold which will be presented by the UC Davis Department of Theatre and Dance from Feb. 22 to March 2.