Quantavia Smith, who was often homeless for a decade, now has a studio apartment in Los Angeles with easy access to public transit.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s decision to step aside after nearly four decades in Congress kicks off a wide-open contest to replace her at a time when her home city of San Francisco is roiled in debate about what its future should look like.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she won’t seek reelection.

San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie is pushing to build more homes to address the city's housing crisis.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed into law legislation aiming to increase transparency and prevent AI models from being used to cause catastrophic harms.

Some Democratic-led states are doubling down on their resistance to President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration.

House Republicans surprised tech industry watchers and outraged many state governments when they added a clause to Republicans’ signature “big, beautiful” tax bill that bans states and localities from regulating artificial intelligence for a decade.

President Donald Trump wants to turn Alcatraz into a federal prison again.

California is considering a bill that would allow insurers and victims of climate-driven natural disasters to sue the oil industry for damages.

A California landmark legislation to establish first-in-the-nation safety measures for the largest AI systems has cleared an important vote.

California lawmakers have advanced a bill that would regulate powerful artificial intelligence systems.

A bill before California lawmakers would require new cars sold in the state in coming years to beep a warning whenever drivers exceed the speed limit by at least 10 mph.

Oakland officials have voted in favor of changing the name of the city’s airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport, despite San Francisco threatening a lawsuit over what it says is a trademark violation.

California could soon legalize psychedelic therapy under a bipartisan bill being introduced Tuesday.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law to fast-track low-income housing on surplus land owned by nonprofit colleges and religious institutions.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill aimed at limiting the price of insulin.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill aimed at decriminalizing the possession and use of some hallucinogens, including psychedelic mushrooms.

California will soon require big businesses to report a wide range of greenhouse gas emissions.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom says he plans to sign into law a pair of climate-focused bills intended to force major corporations to be more transparent about greenhouse gas emissions and the financial risks stemming from global warming.

California lawmakers have approved legislation requiring major companies to disclose a sweeping range of greenhouse gas emissions.

Activists in the LGBTQ+ community are calling for new ways to mobilize against threats to their long fight for equality.

San Francisco is repealing a ban on city-funded travel to 30 states that it says restrict abortion, voting and LGBTQ+ rights after determining the boycott is doing more harm than good.

California lawmakers are going to try to officially repeal a 15-year-old voter initiative meant to ban same-sex marriage in the state.

Oregon will begin allowing licensed, regulated use of psychedelic mushrooms in 2023.

A new law aims to stop other states from punishing children who come to California for gender-affirming care.

California won't allow teens age 15 and up to be vaccinated against the coronavirus without their parents' consent.

California’s governor has declared a state of emergency to speed efforts to combat the monkeypox outbreak.

California's public health officer says officials are pressing for more vaccine and closely monitoring the spread of the monkeypox virus.

The mayor of San Francisco announced a state of emergency Thursday over the growing number of monkeypox cases.

Top U.S. health officials say the country's monkeypox outbreak can still be stopped despite rising case numbers and limited vaccine supplies.

Across the U.S., numerous Republican-governed states are pushing for sweeping bans on abortion.

Democrats are moving quickly to make sure abortions are a constitutional right in California.

Democratic lawmakers in 18 states are following California’s lead in seeking to offer legal refuge to displaced transgender youth and their families.

Democratic lawmakers have agreed to legislation that could let the University of California, Berkeley accept thousands more students this fall after courts froze enrollment in a dispute with residents over growth.

California lawmakers are trying again to get rid of the nation's only law that lets voters veto public housing projects.

California could mandate that all businesses require their employees and independent contractors receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

California would allow children age 12 and up to be vaccinated without parental consent under a state senator's proposal.

The University of California Hastings College of the Law wants to remove the name of its founder, who sponsored massacres of Native Americans in the 1850s.

California could soon force large department stores to display some child products in gender-neutral terms.

California lawmakers will wait until next year to consider decriminalizing psychedelics.

California may become the first state to pay drug addicts to stay sober.

The school just reopened Monday, Feb. 22, 2021, for in-person learning. (AP Photo/Haven Daily)SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California lawmakers on Thursday approved a $6.6 billion plan aimed at pressuring school districts to return students to the classroom before the end of the school year. Districts that resume in-person learning after that date won’t get any of that money. Frustrated parents and politicians have been clamoring for schools to return students to the classroom for months. To get the money, districts governed by the first set of rules must offer in-person learning through at least second grade by the end of March.

FILE - In this Jan. 21, 2020, file photo, state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, speaks at a news conference in Sacramento, Calif. On Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021, a federal judge ruled California could enforce a 2018 net neutrality law. Jerry Brown signed the bill in 2018, making California the first state to pass a net neutrality law. But in a separate lawsuit, the telecom industry asked a federal judge to keep blocking the law. On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge John A. Mendez denied their request, allowing California to begin enforcing the law. The law seeks to ban internet providers from slowing down customers' data streams based on the content they are viewing.

FILE - In this Jan. 16, 2015, file photo, pumpjacks are seen operating in Bakersfield, Calif. Last year, California Gov. Gavin Newsom called on the state Legislature to ban fracking by 2024. The bill would also ban all fracking in California, along with other forms of oil extraction such as cyclic steaming, by Jan. 1, 2027. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistribuSACRAMENTO, Calif. – New legislation would ban all fracking in California by 2027, taking aim at the powerful oil and gas industry in the state already planning to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. AdTwo state senators answered that call Wednesday, announcing a measure that would halt new fracking permits or renewals by Jan. 1 and ban the practice altogether by 2027.

But housing advocates worry the plan gives landlords too much power to decide what happens to their tenants' debt. In October, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia estimated that California renters had compiled $1.7 billion in unpaid rent. California estimating as many as 1.1 million households were behind on their rent in December, facing an estimated $3.6 billion in debt. The state would pay for the program by using $2.6 billion in federal rent relief money from the most recent coronavirus rescue package. The federal money can only be spent on households whose income is 80% or less of the area median income.

A similar bill failed to pass last year after facing opposition from the California Medical Association. It would ban specific types of surgeries on infants born with intersex characteristics. There are no state or federal laws regulating intersex surgeries in the U.S., according to InterACT, a national intersex advocacy group. The California Legislature passed a nonbinding resolution in 2018 that urged doctors to defer intersex surgeries on children “until the child is able to participate in decision making." But since then, two major children's hospitals — Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago and Boston Children's Hospital — announced they would stop performing some surgeries on intersex children who were too young to give meaningful consent.

Gavin Newsom signed a law that requires the state to house transgender prisoners based on their gender identity. The law Newsom signed Saturday says officers must ask inmates privately during the intake process if they identify as transgender, nonbinary or intersex. Rhode Island, New York City and Massachusetts have also housed inmates based on their gender identity. The law also requires officers to address transgender inmates based on the pronouns of their choice. And it requires officers to search inmates based on the search policy of their gender identity.