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California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed seven bills requiring data center operators to disclose electricity and water consumption details starting next year. The legislation also directs the California Public Utilities Commission to create separate electricity rates for data centers so their grid connection costs aren't passed on to other ratepayers, and pushes facilities toward greater renewable energy use.
A commentary piece argues that widely cited claims of an epidemic of loneliness rest on flawed data analysis. The author points to surveys, such as one showing 76% of Californians and 78% of residents in China's Anhui province report feeling lonely, and argues researchers wrongly assume this represents an 'unprecedented' rise without historical comparison data. The piece also criticizes age-based breakdowns of loneliness statistics for assuming today's young people will remain lonely as they age, and older people were never lonely when young.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of seven bills that shield residential utility customers from bearing the costs of AI data center growth. The laws create a new rate category for data centers through the state's Public Utilities Commission, mandate disclosure of water and energy use to local governments, and require efficiency benchmarks before facilities can get streamlined approval.
California and other states that had sued to block Paramount Skydance's $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery reached a settlement allowing the deal to proceed, according to multiple reports. The agreement reportedly relies on behavioral commitments from the companies rather than blocking the merger outright, and comes after four states that initially resisted California's proposed terms dropped their objections over the weekend.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order convening national experts for two months to draft new AI safety recommendations, including a possible emergency shutdown mechanism for advanced AI systems. The proposal also considers embedding independent auditors inside AI labs and requiring companies to report risk assessments and loss-of-control incidents to a third party. Recommendations from the panel would be used to update state law.
California lawmakers passed AB 1661, directing $5 million in penalty funds from oil wells near Inglewood toward direct cash payments for up to 1,000 households affected by respiratory or reproductive health issues linked to nearby drilling. The bill, authored by Assemblymember Isaac G. Bryan, would offer eligible households as much as $5,000 each and awaits Governor Gavin Newsom's signature, expected by October. The funding draws from a state repair and reinvestment account meant for communities closest to the oil field, which sits near predominantly Black neighborhoods like Ladera Heights and Baldwin Hills.
California faces pressure from the Trump administration, which is withholding Bipartisan Infrastructure Law broadband funds from states unless they agree not to enforce net neutrality rules. California and Illinois remain the only states yet to finalize their BEAD funding agreements, and California is weighing whether to accept the federal money and abandon enforcement of its own net neutrality law or fight the condition in court. Nearly 30 advocacy groups have urged state leaders to defend the law rather than trade it away for funding.
California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order directing state experts to examine potential AI oversight measures, including the possibility of a 'kill switch' to halt dangerous AI systems. The move formalizes a process for studying regulatory options rather than immediately imposing new rules.
Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order directing California officials to convene experts who will deliver recommendations within two months on strengthening AI safety rules. The proposals under consideration include a verified 'kill switch' for frontier AI models, onsite independent audits, mandatory transparency reporting, and required disclosure of 'loss-of-control incidents.' The order also speeds up implementation of two laws Newsom already signed establishing AI safety verifiers and an auditor registry.
The FAA announced that laser strikes on aircraft fell for a third consecutive year, with 4,470 incidents reported between January and July 2026, a 24 percent decline from the same period in 2025. California and Texas logged the most reports overall, while New Mexico and Hawaii topped the list per capita.
Recent storm-driven waves fueled by Hurricane Marie eroded parts of the Southern California coastline near the decommissioned San Onofre nuclear plant, reigniting concerns about the safety of nearby spent fuel storage. The 3.6 million pounds of radioactive waste sit in concrete canisters about 100 feet from a seawall that protects the site, and Southern California Edison has pledged to relocate the waste to higher ground if erosion modeling warrants it. Experts say near-term risk is low, but note the waste will remain on-site indefinitely as no permanent disposal solution exists.
California's Public Utilities Commission is scheduled to vote on a resolution that would exempt broadband providers from the state's net neutrality law in order to accept $1.86 billion in federal BEAD broadband deployment funding. The Trump administration's NTIA has required all states receiving BEAD money to waive enforcement of net neutrality and rate regulation against participating ISPs statewide, not just in funded areas, for up to 14 years. California and Illinois are the last two states yet to finalize their BEAD funding agreements.