This week, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 268, which places Diwali - also known as Deepavali and the Hindu "Festival of Lights" - on the list of officially observed state holidays. The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2026. Diwali falls on Oct. 20, but the date varies each year, similar to Lunar New Year, and is based on the Hindu lunar calendar.
In August, California had 248,000 federal government jobs, according to seasonally adjusted numbers that Beacon Economics derived from monthly jobs reports released by the state Employment Development Department. During that same month, the Bay Area had 41,000 federal jobs, Beacon estimates show. August is the most recent month for which nonfarm payroll figures are available for the Bay Area and California.
The number of whales getting tangled up in fishing nets, line, buoys and other miscellaneous rope off the coasts of the United States hit a record high in 2024, with California taking the ignominious lead. According to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, there were 95 confirmed entangled whales in U.S. waters last year. Eighty-seven were live animals, while reports for eight came in after the animals had died.
Since its launch in 1993, the Got Milk? campaign has become one of the most recognizable advertising initiatives in American history. Originally created by the advertising agency Goodby Silverstein & Partners, the campaign was designed to promote milk consumption in a way that was memorable, playful, and culturally resonant. The signature milk mustache portraits, shot by photographers including Annie Leibovitz, paired celebrities, athletes, and everyday people with a humorous, relatable visual motif: a glass of milk and a creamy white mustache.
Located in Lone Pine, a town at the base of Mt. Whitney with just 1,300 residents, Southern Inyo Healthcare District is the only hospital within a nearly 60-mile radius. It's the closest stop for injured hikers and dehydrated tourists visiting Whitney or nearby Death Valley, which regularly receives over 1 million visitors per year. Without it there would be a 136-mile stretch between the next closest hospitals in the eastern Sierra Nevada.
Californians are disproportionately at risk due to a substantial increase in wildfire activity in the Western U.S., said Marshall Burke, an environmental economist at Stanford and co-author of the study. The researchers estimate an excess of 5,060 deaths in the Golden State per year, compared to 2011-2020 - deaths that wouldn't have happened if not for the effects of wildfire smoke.
California is the US state with the most Subway locations, at 1,985 as of July 2025 (via ScrapeHero). Not far behind is Texas with 1,813 stores. Texas is also home to the US city with the most Subway restaurants, Houston, with 203 total. Coming in third place is Florida with 1,181 locations, followed by Ohio with 935 and Illinois with 910.
Luis Briseno won $10 million from a winning Royal Riches scratcher bought at Fruitvale Bottles & Liquor at 3715 International Blvd. in Oakland, the lottery said Friday. That's the largest recent jackpot in the state since June, when an unnamed winner scored a $10 million win from a scratcher bought in Barley Bin Liquor in Whittier, and Steven Muhlestein won a $10 million Super Bonus in May from a scratcher sold at Vintage Wine Shoppe & Liquor in Concord.
The cost of putting California's partisan redistricting ballot measure before voters this fall is expected to run the state $282.6 million, eclipsing the final bill of the last statewide special election. As Gov. Gavin Newsom and his allies signed off on Proposition 50 last month a plan to counteract an effort by Texas Republicans to gerrymander the state's congressional maps and pick up GOP seats in the U.S. House the governor vowed to reimburse counties for the hefty costs of an unexpected election.
The company saw 18 worker suicide attempts at one plant in 2010 alone. But worker rights at Foxconn have seen some improvements since 2010, largely due to intense international pressure following the suicides and subsequent labor unrest. However, reports from labor watchdogs indicate that these gains have been inconsistent and, in many cases, have failed to create a genuinely safe and equitable work environment. Many fundamental issues particularly excessive hours, low pay and limits on freedom of association persist.
California turned 175 on September 9, which means it's time to celebrate the only way the Golden State knows how: with alcohol that costs more than rent and tastes like optimism mixed with wildfire smoke. A concoction that shakes you up! Forget cake. Forget balloons. This is a state with a history that reads like a fantasy sci-fi novella, with chapters on the Gold Rush, the 1906 earthquake, Charles Manson, Hollywood's Golden Age, Silicon Valley, and the rise of agentic artificial intelligence.
It should go without saying that when you are looking for an attorney to set up your estate plan, especially if you have children you want to pass along money or possessions to, you need to feel absolutely comfortable that whatever documents are set up are done with your best interest in mind. There is no question that what this original lawyer did to this Redditor is both morally and ethically wrong.
Driving the news: The ruling temporarily blocks the July court order that stopped ICE from targeting California residents based on race, language and work while a lawsuit challenging the action makes its way through the courts, with a hearing scheduled for Sept. 24. Zoom in: Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in concurrence with the decision that U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong's order went too far in its restrictions on how ICE agents stop and question people.
A quick-moving wildfire burned homes in a California Gold Rush town settled around 1850 by Chinese miners who were driven out of a nearby camp and the blaze grew without containment on Wednesday. The fire rapidly expanded to 10 sq miles (26 sq km) in size, forcing the evacuation Tuesday of the Chinese Camp town and surrounding highways, according to CalFire, the state's chief fire agency. There were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.
The commutation, one of 10 granted by the governor Friday, allows Cuong Tran to make his case for parole earlier than expected. "This act of clemency for Mr. Tran does not minimize or forgive his conduct or the harm it caused," Newsom wrote in the commutation. "It does recognize the work he has done since to transform himself." In 2011, Tran, then 31, tried to hire a hit man at his younger brother's request, but the assassin was actually an undercover San Jose police officer,
Rita Moreno doesn't just bring her dynamic persona to classic films like West Side Story and Singin' in the Rain. The EGOT winner also infuses her homes with that same bright, bombastic energy. When asked how she would describe her interior design style, the actor once said, "I'm tribal and chintz and wicker. I love more natural and organic things. But I also love elegance."
For the first time in nearly a decade, federal officials on Tuesday auctioned off leases for new geothermal energy projects in California - and all 13 parcels offered received bids. Dozens of buyers participated in the Bureau of Land Management's online sale of 10-year leases on 23,000 acres in Imperial, Lassen and Modoc counties. Geothermal is a growing source of energy that can produce clean electricity 24 hours a day, unlike wind and solar power.
Ice cream might be the ultimate summer treat. Its cold, frozen nature means it easily cools you down on a hot day while providing you a sweet hit of flavor. Ice cream also brings back memories of warm summer days off school in childhood. Given this, it should come as no surprise that the state that eats the most ice cream is a warm, sunny locale: California.
The bill, AB 1264, would task state scientists with identifying particularly harmful ultra-processed foods based on scientific research linking them to cancer, cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, neurological or behavioral issues, and other health harms for phase out by 2032.
Several states have implemented a small fee for e-commerce deliveries that funds electrification programs, incentives, and grants. Colorado's program, which levies a fee of $0.28 per delivery and exempts small businesses, generated over $75 million over its first year.
From Donald Trump's first day back in office, he vowed to unravel California's sway over the nation's auto-emission standards by eliminating the state's progressive zero-emission mandates.
The development could replace the existing Bandley Center, a commercial building home to a local tax business, a Chinese language school, a clay studio, and a couple of small law and architecture offices.
"For too long, attempts to modernize our critical water infrastructure have stalled in endless red tape, burdened with unnecessary delay. We're done with barriers. Our state needs to complete this project as soon as possible, so that we can better store and manage water to prepare for a hotter, drier future."
