Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed several labor and employment bills that advance workers’ rights. Senate Bill 399 prohibits retaliation for declining to attend meetings on political or religious matters. The bill defines “political matters” to include “the decision to join or support any political party or political or labor organization” including captive audience meetings that...
San Jose City Hall abuses its power by asking for confidential sources
The criminal investigation related to Councilmember Omar Torres has taken an ugly political turn — with people lining up to either defend or denounce the downtown politician. San José Spotlight knew that would happen when we broke the news Torres was being accused of child sex abuse. What we didn’t expect is San Jose City...
Horowitz: Patrick Ahrens is denying the truth on tuition hikes
The rising cost of education is one of the biggest challenges facing California families. As someone who has spent years advocating for affordable and accessible education, I know how devastating tuition hikes can be for students who are already struggling to make ends meet. That’s why I was disappointed to see Assembly District 26 candidate...
Lopez: Prop. 36 saves lives and protects communities by requiring treatment for deadly addictions
As a 35-year veteran of law enforcement I know both the healing power of substance abuse treatment and the danger of releasing those from jail or prison whose untreated addictions drive them to hurt themselves and others with alarming regularity. California once used proven drug courts to require treatment for many involved in the criminal...
Zisser: Independent oversight can show more compassion
My new year’s resolution seven years ago this week — Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year and is being celebrated this week — was to approach the San Jose independent police auditor job with authenticity, to not let the inevitable politics water down my passion or commitment. I walked out of services, where something...
Philbrick: The future of pedestrian safety
On the corner, waiting at the white-lined crosswalk just a block from school, children line up to look both ways and be escorted across the busy intersection by a crossing guard. Dressed in neon yellow or orange, crossing guards were once familiar faces, but many school districts across the country struggle to hire and retain...
Urbanowski: Working together for arts education
Proposition 28, the Arts and Music in Schools Act, was passed by voters across our state in November 2022 and aims to enhance arts and music education by providing dedicated funding for related programs in K-12 public schools. As the first statewide initiative focused on this area, Proposition 28 takes a significant step toward addressing...
Editorial: Open the gates to the Vietnamese Heritage Garden
Public parks and gardens are designed to draw people closer to nature. They are not meant to be gated and locked to limit access to public spaces. That defeats the purpose of creating these parklands, which is why the entrance to the Vietnamese Heritage Garden should be unlocked. Within the gated garden is a bronze monument...
Collins: Why Proposition 33 is bad for housing
Proposition 33 attempts to repeal the bipartisan Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act enacted in 1995. The three key provisions of Costa-Hawkins were to stop the expansion of rent control to single-family homes, allow housing providers the opportunity to charge market rates when a tenant leaves and prohibit the imposition of rent control on buildings constructed after...
Robinson: Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor’s Trumpian politics
Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor is known for her vengefulness. She is the Trumpian equivalent for small government. Early in her career she lost her first attempt running for mayor. The Mercury News called her tactics “loony” in an editorial as she went after the Santa Clara Chamber of Commerce with no evidence. The irony...