KQED's The California Report

Should Californians have a right to housing enshrined in the state constitution? Well, a bill to do just that just passed its first legislative hurdle in Sacramento.Reporter: Vanessa Rancaño, KQED  Many people living in wildfire-prone areas of California were already struggling with home insurance before the news that Allstate and State Farm would stop writing new policies. So for those who've lost homes to fire, how does this change their financial calculus?Reporter: Danielle Venton, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The administration of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says it’s responsible for sending two chartered planes of asylum seekers to Sacramento over the past week. That comes after Governor Gavin Newsom suggested that DeSantis, who’s also running for president, might be guilty of kidnapping.Reporter: Tyche Hendricks, KQEDThe return of a Tulare Lake in California’s Central Valley because of flooding has caused millions of dollars in agricultural damage. But the new lake is also giving members of a Native American tribe a rare chance to get back in touch with their roots and sacred traditions.   Reporter: Soreath Hok, KVPR Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eviction cases are piling up in Los Angeles County courtrooms, especially now that the county’s COVID protections have ended. Landlords almost always show up with attorneys, while tenants tend to represent themselves.Reporter: David Wagner, LAist Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg says he's proud of the way community groups and local officials are stepping up, to aid the dozens of bewildered migrants who’ve arrived in his city by chartered jets in recent days.Reporter: Tyche Hendricks, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The CARE Court program is part of the state's big changes in how it treats the most severely mentally ill. A handful of counties are scheduled to begin the programs this year, including Los Angeles County.Reporter: Saul Gonzalez, The California ReportState authorities say they’ll investigate how a group of migrants, who were reportedly bused from Texas to New Mexico, before being flown to California, ended up at a church in Sacramento. Reporter: Daphne Young, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

State lawmakers are trying to make renting more affordable by capping how much landlords can charge for security deposits. Reporter: Alejandra Reyes-Velarde, CalMattersThere's been some very un-California weather in the southern part of our state. Cloudy skies have filled the skies the last few weeks.Reporter: Saul Gonzalez, The California ReportAccessible health care is often a huge challenge in rural parts of California. That includes in Nevada County in the Sierra Foothills.Reporter: April Dembosky, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By next year, every county in California will have to implement a new statewide program called CARE Court. It focuses on getting unhoused people with severe mental health disorders into treatment.  Eight counties have agreed to begin early, including San Francisco.Reporter: Scott Shafer, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Catalytic converters are a part that all gas-powered vehicles in California are required to have in order to keep their exhaust up to our air quality standards. Thousands of cars across Los Angeles have had theirs stolen, because of the part’s valuable precious metals.Reporter: Megan Jamerson, KCRWCalifornia’s record snowpack is starting to melt, and it might impact peak wildfire season. For some higher-elevation parts of the state, excess snowpack from the winter might stick around longer than usual and help in reducing severe wildfire risks. But in lower-elevation areas that dry out sooner, it’s a different story. Reporter: Manola Secaira, CapRadio  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fentanyl Deaths Up in California, New Data ShowNew Federal data show overdose deaths in California up slightly, and drug policy experts say lasting change requires lawmakers to examine and treat underlying causes of addiction. Meanwhile, a bill to create a task force is now advancing at the State Capitol. Reporter: Stephanie O’Neill Patison, KFF Health News Carmel-by-the Sea Addresses Its AddressesThe city of Carmel-by-the-Sea is known for its quaint shops, movie star residents and bohemian quirkiness. It’s that bohemian quirkiness that's causing a controversy in the coastal village. Last fall a group of residents asked the city to change a one hundred year old tradition. Reporter: Doug McKnight, KAZU Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Consider the beaver. Once thought of as a “nuisance rodent,” yes it’s a rodent, for flooding roads, farmland and other properties that we want to keep dry, the beaver is now embraced as a “climate solving hero” and an eco-engineer. Why? Well for its natural ability to help increase water storage and to create natural buffers against wildfires. Guests: Laurie Wayburn, Co-Founder of Pacific Forest Trust and Leila Phillip, Author of the book "Beaver Land: How One Weird Rodent Made America" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The California State University system has some of the lowest tuition rates in the country. But a huge budget gap could force new tuition hikes. Reporter: Mikhail Zinshteyn, CalMattersStanford University is conducting the first clinical trial in the world, looking at whether Paxlovid could be a possible treatment for Long COVID patients.  Reporter: Keith Mizuguchi, The California ReportKennedy High School is in Richmond, a town northeast of San Francisco. One retired teacher has shown extraordinary commitment to the school, where he’s dedicated his time and energy for more than 50 years. Reporter: Richard Gonzales, The California Report Magazine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices