Rich Ehisen

With the final weeks of Session upon us, several procedural items that regularly occur on the Floors of the California Legislature may be in order. Today intrepid Capitol lobbyist, law professor and regular Capitol Weekly contributor Chris Micheli offers insights into understanding the session's closing moments.

The latest question posed to our panel of experts: “Should there be a hard limit on the number of committees a legislator can serve on?”

As his time as governor comes to an end, Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing a life-or-death decision: whether to commute the sentences of the 547 men and 18 women in state prison who have been condemned to death. There is good reason to believe Newsom will take that step, and there is reason to believe he won’t. Neither he nor his aides are telegraphing his plan.

Left in limbo by the Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom, California’s private foster agencies say they’re struggling to stay afloat until the new year, when they hope a new governor will help them navigate an ongoing insurance crisis that threatens their existence.

A bill that would have allowed drivers to opt in to usage-based insurance was held under submission by the Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this month, leaving California as the only state not to allow car insurance rates based on driving data

When interpreting ambiguous statutes in California, the courts of this state may examine the legislative history of an enacted statute in order to try and effectuate the intent of the Legislature. In such a case, it is important for legislators, staff, and interest groups to better understand the need to provide adequate legislative history.

Reason exists for some optimism among California's clinical researchers – a $12 billion ballot initiative actually on the fall ballot. It is Proposition 38, which would provide $8.4 billion for immunology research involving a wide range of afflictions, including cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease.

In reviewing legislation during the last month of the 2026 California Legislative Session, I have come across a number of examples of excellent bill drafting and wanted to draw attention to them to serve as guides in the upcoming 2027 Legislative Session.

After several years of legislative attempts to expand menopause care – including a bill Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed last year – California has enacted new requirements to expand treatment, educate patients and providers and change how health plans decide on menopause care.

This year’s legislative docket saw a number of bills addressing AI in healthcare, which raised questions surrounding the rights of patients, healthcare workers and hospitals as AI becomes commonplace in the healthcare sphere.