Policy Errors at the Root of California Community College Enrollment Fraud
Policy Errors at the Root of California Community College Enrollment Fraud
California’s community college system continues to struggle with massive enrollment fraud, costing taxpayers millions in improper financial aid payments and raising hurdles to real students trying to complete their programs. California community colleges are especially vulnerable to fraud because of two progressive policy imperatives: tuition-free education and protecting undocumented immigrants. While providing free education without...
By Marc Joffe
The Reading Crisis: Why Illiteracy Threatens California’s Future and What We Can Do Now
The Reading Crisis: Why Illiteracy Threatens California’s Future and What We Can Do Now
The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results for Grade 12 reading are out — and the numbers are grim. Only a staggering 35 percent of high school seniors nationwide were proficient in reading. Nearly one in three graduates struggles to draw basic conclusions from a text, a skill essential for everything from voting...
By Lance Christensen, Sheridan Karras
Fact-Checking Newsom’s ‘Clean Energy’ Claims
Fact-Checking Newsom’s ‘Clean Energy’ Claims
In a recent guest op-ed published by the Wall Street Journal, California Governor Newsom claimed that “Clean Energy Powers California’s Economic Growth,” a claim that is transparently false. Aggressive “clean energy” mandates, paired with perpetually escalating restrictions on conventional energy sources, are the reasons Californians pay the highest prices in America for gasoline and electricity, and nearly the highest...
By Edward Ring
Tips to Understand California’s Energy Economy
Tips to Understand California’s Energy Economy
Last month, for the uninitiated, we devoted a newsletter to the topic “Tips to Understand Our Convoluted Yet Obligatory Units of Water.” It attempted to summarize some essential facts and relevant units for anyone who wants to monitor state water policy. Now it’s time for those of us who fancy ourselves members of the energy...
By Edward Ring
Charter Bill Results Roll in as Legislative Session Ends
Charter Bill Results Roll in as Legislative Session Ends
SACRAMENTO — The California Legislature has officially wrapped up the first year of the legislative session, going a day into overtime to finish voting on a plethora of bills. Last night on September 12th, AB 84 and SB 494 — two concerning bills for charter schools that CPC has been monitoring — were put in...
By California Policy Center
Charlie Kirk’s Legacy: The Contest of Ideas
Charlie Kirk’s Legacy: The Contest of Ideas
Charlie Kirk was murdered Wednesday in front of thousands of Utah Valley University students who had come to hear him, cheer him, and challenge him. It was the first stop on his fall “American Comeback Tour,” though he had been visiting college campuses all year — including right here in California. Kirk founded Turning Point...
By California Policy Center
The Clock is Ticking on Charter School Bills
The Clock is Ticking on Charter School Bills
SACRAMENTO — As charter school advocates wait for the California legislature to complete their work before session ends this weekend, the following is a summary of the most important developments regarding charter school bills in the California legislature. Since the Senate Pro Tem waived Joint Rule 61, any bill that was amended within 72-hours will...
By California Policy Center
Pre‑Shocks on the Fault Line: City of Hayward Needs More Than Cosmetic Fixes to Stay Solvent
Pre‑Shocks on the Fault Line: City of Hayward Needs More Than Cosmetic Fixes to Stay Solvent
Hayward, the Bay Area’s sixth largest city, is facing a self-inflicted financial crisis. By failing to responsibly budget, municipal leaders are failing the 162,000 residents who pay the city’s high taxes and rely on municipal services. At its June 17, 2025, meeting, the Hayward City Council adopted the city’s operating budget for Fiscal Year 2025-26.1...
By Mark Moses
Why Teachers Unions Trade Algebra for Antisemitism
Why Teachers Unions Trade Algebra for Antisemitism
Politico: “Why Sacramento is fighting over antisemitism in schools” CPC’s answer: Because the California Teacher Association (CTA) would rather yell about foreign policy than answer for its documented failure to educate California’s students. To paraphrase the old joke, those who can’t do, teach – and those who can’t teach math or writing fall back on...
By Will Swaim
For Isleton (and other small California cities), disincorporation is the answer
For Isleton (and other small California cities), disincorporation is the answer
The small Sacramento Delta city of Isleton has been making news for all the wrong reasons this summer. It is facing a financial crisis and talk of bankruptcy is in the air. But a better option is to cease being a city at all by disincorporating. As the accompanying population chart suggests, Isleton has seen...
By Marc Joffe
The Economic Development Paradigm – City-Created Problems and Taxpayer-Funded Fixes
The Economic Development Paradigm – City-Created Problems and Taxpayer-Funded Fixes
Economic development departments are often celebrated as promoters of prosperity and local employment. Each year, local governments spend tens of billions of dollars on economic development incentives—tax abatements, fee waivers, and direct subsidies—intended to lure private investment. Cities across the nation tout their ability to entice marquee employers, generate buzz with ribbon-cuttings, and implement incentive...
By Mark Moses
The $137 Billion Question: What Are California’s Schools Delivering?
The $137 Billion Question: What Are California’s Schools Delivering?
With schools back in session and the state budget finalized, the question of what California spends on public education — and what it delivers in return — is at the forefront of many parents’ and taxpayers’ minds. California has among the highest per-pupil spending in the nation, but questions persist about whether California families are...
By Sheridan Karras
The Progressive Government Union War on America
The Progressive Government Union War on America
Public sector unions constitute the bedrock of progressive power in the United States. The estimated total nationwide membership exceeds 7 million, or 32 percent of all public employees. This compares to an equal number of unionized employees in the private sector, 7 million, but that only represents 6 percent of private sector employees. The fact...
By Edward Ring
Will the Sites Reservoir Ever Get Built?
Will the Sites Reservoir Ever Get Built?
The short answer is no. Never. What is happening with the Sites Reservoir is a case study in why, if the people running California today were in charge in the 1950s and 1960s, the California Water Project would never have been built. This reservoir, approved by voters in 2014, could have been built by now....
By Edward Ring