Here's your daily briefing...
Still holding the pen: Gov. Jerry Brown acted on 76 more bills yesterday. Capital Public Radio reports Brown signed a bill to remove the statute of limitations on rape and a measure to require ride-hailing companies to conduct background checks on drivers. He vetoed a bill that would have barred smoking in state parks and on state beaches. According to the Associated Press, today the governor is expected to sign more bills, including one to automatically enroll millions of California workers in retirement savings accounts.
Wells Fargo in the hot seat: California treasurer John Chiang has decided to nix some of the business the state does with bank giant Wells Fargo after finding out it increased profits by generating fake accounts under customers’ names. Capital Public Radio State government reporter Ben Bradford reports the decision is bad news for the bank and its reputation, but it could be good news for Chiang who is running for governor and could get future kudos for the move.
Are driver-free cars ready for public use? Not yet, but California is moving forward with creating regulations for when they are ready. According to Capital Public Radio, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles is developing its plan to regulate self-driving cars after the federal government recently released new guidelines. Fifteen companies have already been testing autonomous vehicles in the state. Also on the airwaves this morning: NPR talked self-driverless cars and the ethics behind artificial intelligence making life or death decisions.
On the ballot: Proposition 61 is the most expensive initiative fight Californians will vote on in November, with opponents having reportedly put $86 million into the “no” campaign and proponents adding in nearly $10 million to the “yes” campaign. The proposition proposes to regulate drug prices in California, but according to KPCC’s Rebecca Plevin, it’s a complex issue with supporters saying it will lower drug prices and pharmaceutical companies saying it won’t.
Did you catch … yesterday’s California Report? The statewide syndication sent a reporter to Trinity County to check out how the passage of Proposition 64 could affect the county. It’s worth a look if even just to check out the Google Earth timelapse KQED put together to show the increasing number of marijuana grows in Trinity Pines over the last 10 years.