San Francisco Public Press (https://www.sfpublicpress.org/2016/01/page/2/)
As economy rebounded, Bay Area rental costs outpaced national average
It is viscerally obvious to Bay Area residents — or anyone trying to hold on to a Bay Area residence — that the price of housing is out of control. Displaying government price data in new ways can begin to show how severe the problem has become. » Read more
Federal affordability scale falls far short of helping thousands pay for coverage
The cost of living in San Francisco is so distorted that several thousand city residents who became eligible for health insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act almost two years ago still go without insurance, forgo care they need, or use free services intended for the poor. » Read more
With eligibility for aid frozen at 2005 income levels, critics press for wider distribution of aid
Julia and her 4-year-old daughter got their big break last year when Julia was hired full-time as a program coordinator for a local nonprofit organization at $50,000 a year. » Read more
As income inequality grows, gourmet trend highlights the need for inexpensive groceries
If you shop at Casa Lucas and then Local Mission Market three blocks away, the contrasts of modern-day San Francisco come into sharp focus.
Casa Lucas, on the Mission District’s central artery of 24th Street for over 35 years, boasts a massive selection of produce, meats and traditional Latin American items, such as tamarind candy and chicharrones, near the register. » Read more
100,000 city residents cannot afford the Internet at home
In recent years, San Francisco has become the epicenter of technological development. While multi-billion dollar companies develop the latest new Internet services, 100,000 San Francisco residents cannot afford a home connection, according to a report from the city’s budget and legislative analyst. » Read more
By Kim Todd, Bay Nature
Lobos Creek trailhead in the Presidio looks wild. Flushed orange monkey flower, sage and coyote bush spill over re-created sand dunes. Nearby, the creek empties into the ocean. But close your eyes. A water truck pulls up to a stop sign with a mechanical whine.
By Lisa Fine, KQED News Fix/State of Health
When it comes to vaccination rates, Alameda County made the comeback of the year in California. The county was named by state officials as the “most improved” for raising the rate of kindergartners with “up-to-date” immunizations, said Amy Pine, immunization director of the Alameda County Public Health Department. Read the complete story at KQED News Fix/State of Health.
By Laurel Rosenhall, CALmatters.org
Lobbyists in Sacramento talk about the “inside game” and the “outside game.”
The inside game is the one they play under the Capitol dome: testifying in committee hearings, meeting with legislative staff, nabbing lawmakers in the hallway on the way to a crucial vote. The outside game is aimed at you. It tries to get ordinary Californians riled up about an issue so you’ll pressure lawmakers to do what the lobbyists want. Think of ad campaigns, noisy rallies, pleas to “call your legislator.”
These tactics have become a growing part of the way the biggest interest groups work to influence state officials as they adapted to the imposition of term limits in the 1990s, which changed the relationships between lobbyists and legislators. Read the complete story at CALmatters.org.
By Sam Harnett, KQED News Fix
The business tactics of outsourcing work and offshoring jobs were once reserved for large tech corporations like Oracle, Cisco and Hewlett-Packard. Now, thanks to the growing gig economy, even the smallest startups are in on the action. Tyson Quick is the CEO of Instapage. It’s a new tech company in San Francisco, but it’s not your stereotypical Bay Area tech startup run out of a garage by college dropouts. In fact, much of the company is actually not in the Bay Area at all.
By Viji Sundaram, New America Media
California Governor Jerry Brown’s $170.7 billion proposed budget, which he unveiled last Thursday, is being greeted with mixed emotions. While health care advocates are pleased that a program to provide health insurance for the state’s uninsured children would be funded in the 2016-17 proposed budget, some are unhappy that the budget does not do nearly enough for children. For one thing, the proposal fails to adequately invest in “critical children’s health and child welfare programs, such as the Early Mental Health Initiative,” said a press release from Children Now, an advocacy organization for children. Read the complete story at New America Media.