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Gov. Newsom Rebukes Trump in Border Troop Withdrawal

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday he's withdrawing most of the state's National Guard troops on the Mexico border because he won't participate in the Trump administration's "absurd theatrics" on border security.

How can California elect more women? Let campaigns pay for child care costs, lawmakers say.

Blanca Rubio put 16 names on her emergency contact form so that family and friends could pick up her two children from school and take them to activities while she was running for her Los Angeles-area Assembly district.

Buffy Wicks, a newly-elected assemblywoman from the East Bay, lugged her breast pump around to events last year so she could feed her infant daughter on the campaign trail.

2019 sees 12 new LGBT laws

After Governor Jerry Brown signed into law an unprecedented number of LGBT-focused bills last legislative session, most of them became law January 1.

Ranging from bills aimed at benefiting LGBT homeless youth to the requirement of sexual orientation training for peace officers, 10 of the 12 pieces of LGBT-focused legislation are now law. The remaining two will take effect January 1, 2020. Two other bills that passed in 2017 will also be implemented this year, bringing the total number of new LGBT laws to 12.

Governor Brown Signs Domestic Violence Protection Bill

On Friday, Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill aimed at increasing protections for survivors of domestic violence from gun violence.

The Bill, AB 3129, authored by Blanca E. Rubio (D-Baldwin Park), will prohibit a person who is convicted on or after January 1, 2019, of a misdemeanor violation of willful infliction of corporal injury upon a spouse, cohabitant, or other specified person, from ever possessing a firearm. The bill would make the violation of that prohibition punishable as either a misdemeanor or as a felony.

A bittersweet victory in the fight for family court reform

For the past year, Ana Estevez has been increasing her advocacy work, meeting with members of Congress and California lawmakers, pushing for a resolution named after her son, who was murdered by his own father.

In remembrance of slain 5-year-old boy, legislator seeks family court changes

Since her 5-year-old son, Aramazd “Piqui” Andressian Jr., was slain by her ex-husband, Ana Estevez has become an advocate for parents who feel unable to protect their children because of prohibitive child custody laws.

Despite Estevez’s efforts to gain sole custody and allegations of domestic violence against ex-husband Aramazd Andressian Sr., the two agreed to share joint custody of Piqui between their homes in Baldwin Park and South Pasadena, respectively.

California Becomes The First State To Prescribe Food As Medicine

In one pilot program, doctor-approved meals lowered health care costs by 55 percent

By Anna Almendrala

Caren Latney was too weak to do simple household chores.

The 51-year-old had been diagnosed with lung cancer and, as she began treatment, struggled to stand over her stove long enough to prepare a meal. She didn’t really want to eat, anyway ― her intensive chemotherapy and radiation left her nauseated and exhausted. But high-calorie, protein-rich meals are essential for cancer patients, who face extreme weight loss, according to cancer experts.

Senate Bill 918 would address an all-too-common problem — youth homelessness

For many people at work, looking at the clock means counting down the hours until their workday is done, when they will return home to family, pets, or maybe even see friends.

For me, the clock was my enemy.

Every day at work, I would dread the passage of time. The mornings would be fine, but as 5 p.m. approached, fear would build inside me, knowing I would soon be leaving the safety of my workplace for another night of living in my car.

California bills target lengthy foster-parent approval process

Assembly Bill (AB) 2183 would create an immediate source of funding for resource families who take in a child on an emergency basis. Introduced by Assemblywoman Blanca E. Rubio (D-Baldwin Park), the bill calls on the state to use two existing pots of money to support resource families during the process: the state’s allocation of the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant, and the state’s Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Program.