Division of Super States

'The 2020 Census apportionment population for the 50 states is 331,108,434. The apportionment population is the sum of the resident population for the 50 states (330,759,736) and the overseas population for the 50 states (348,698).' ~ Brynn Epstein and Daphne Lofquist | April 26, 2021

'This map shows the changes to the number of Congressional seats for each state between apportionment based on the 2010 Census and apportionment based on the 2020 Census.'

'Apportionment is the process of dividing the 435 memberships, or seats, in the U.S. House of Representatives among the 50 states. At the conclusion of each decennial census, the results are used to calculate the number of seats to which each state is entitled. Each of the 50 states is entitled to a minimum of one seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.'

Alphabetical list of state populations and Representatives.

Descending order of states by number of Representatives in graph and table. Scroll down further for each format.

Table showing number of House seats, change in seats, average population per seat for each state since 1910.

'Chart and table of population level and growth rate for the state of California from 1900 to 2021.'

'The following table represents the number of seats in each legislative chamber, each state's total population following each census and how many citizens a state representative and state senator represent based on the census data.'

Scroll down that web page to get to table.

'According to the U.S. Census Bureau, California has a population of 39,237,836. The state is responsible for 14.6 percent of the United States' output.......Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the net value of all goods and services created by a country. In 2019, the California economy recorded a GDP of $2.8 trillion and was the home base of 966,224 businesses. Compared to the economies of countries worldwide, California ranks 5th among them.'

'The richest and most populous state in the union, California has an immeasurable influence on global culture and technology.'

'California's economy is the fifth-biggest in the world.'

'As a center of international trade, the Bay Area has the highest concentration of innovation-related jobs in the States and the largest number of highest-ranked graduate programs in business, law, medicine, and engineering. More than one-third of total US venture capital funding is invested in this region; it has one of the two most highly educated workforces and the highest level of patent generation in the nation. The Bay Area’s economic productivity is almost double the national average.'

'According to a study comparing California state jobs and private-sector salaries, employees in California’s public sector earn almost twice as much.'

'Over two-thirds of US-produced fruits and nuts, as well as a third of the vegetables grown in the States, come from California. California economy statistics about agriculture show that more than 400 agricultural products are produced here.......California’s Central Valley is the world’s largest patch of Class 1 soil'

'About 80% of all water resources intended for businesses and homes across the state are used for irrigating 9 million acres of California farmland.'

'The state generates $1.53 billion per year from wine exports, which makes it the world’s fourth-largest wine producer... ..California has almost 5,000 wineries that produce 81% of all US wine.'

'California’s top exports are computer & electronic products'

'California’s two state university systems contribute more than $60 billion to the economy.'

'The two largest seaports in the US, handling more than 40% of inbound containerized freight, are located in Los Angeles County.'

'Factors such as high housing costs and taxes have an enormous impact on the cost of living and therefore the poverty rate. US Census Bureau statistics show that despite its wealth, California has the nation’s highest poverty rate.' ~ I. Mitic | Updated November 17,2021

'Despite having a GDP that would rank among the largest in the world, the ranking looked at more than the crucial number.'

'The state was hampered by its ranking of 32nd in economic health, which looks at unemployment, underemployment, payroll change, poverty rate, foreclosure rate, and uninsured population.'

'More than two-thirds of the nation's fruits and nuts and a third of vegetables grown in the United States come from California.'

'Adjusting for inflation, 90% of employees in Silicon Valley are making less than their equivalents were 20 years ago.'

'California is set to require the state's city-bus systems to have fully electric fleets by 2040.'

'California has 19 sports teams in the five major professional North American sports leagues. Combined, those teams are estimated to be worth more than $33.5 billion. It certainly helps to have two of the nation's largest media markets in Los Angeles and the Bay Area.' ~ Pat Evans | Apr 26, 2019, 8:02 AM

'From the late 1970s and into the 1990s, when California was a fairly red state, Republicans were crowing about leading the nation. It began when the state’s voters passed Proposition 13 in 1978, which slashed property taxes and made raising other taxes more difficult, igniting what was dubbed a “tax revolt” that reverberated nationally.'

'California’s politics began to turn leftward in the late 1990s for demographic and cultural reasons and have now come full circle. Once a dependably red state, particularly in presidential politics, it is now one of the nation’s bluest states, dominated by Democrats and becoming more so with every election.'

'The eightfold increase in state prison inmates from the earlier policies is being unwound, due to both changed political attitudes and federal court decrees on prison overcrowding. Newsom is now proposing to shut down some of the state’s older prisons.' ~ BY DAN WALTERS | JANUARY 17, 2022

'California’s role in national politics recently has been focused in several areas: On immigration, California has long enacted measures to protect immigrants and there have been at least nine lawsuits challenging federal government actions in this area. On health care, California has sought to protect the federal Affordable Care Act (aka “Obamacare”) provisions.'

'On the environment, California has long been a leading advocate to limit climate change and address clean energy efforts. The state has sued the federal government on gas mileage standards, hydraulic fracking and other measures. On net neutrality, the same day that Governor Brown signed SB 822 (Wiener) to reinstate the Obama Administration FCC rules, the federal government sued to enjoin the measure.' ~ By Chris Micheli | April 15, 2019 2:59 am

'California historically leads the way regarding emissions due to a carve-out in the US Clean Air Act, according to Ethan Elkind, director of the Climate Program at the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at UC Berkeley Law.'

'It is the only state in the US that can make emissions standard mandates beyond the federal government's. But the law also permits other US states to adopt California's standards without the federal government's approval, Elkind said.' ~ Samantha Delouya | Aug 25, 2022, 12:10 PM

“This leaves California with a slice of its sovereign authority that Congress withdraws from every other state,” West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey told the DCNF about the EPA’s ruling. “The EPA cannot selectively waive the Act’s preemption for California alone because that favoritism violates the states’ equal sovereignty.”

'Moreover, the attorneys general argue that California’s waiver puts a “burden of compliance on auto-manufacturers” as automakers will have to cater to both California’s new rules and the mainline federal regulations, according to legal documents.'

'California hopes to enforce this rule through a mandate which could penalize automakers up to $20,000 per vehicle if they fail to meet the state’s sales quotas, a CARB spokesman told the DCNF.'

“It’s being done for PR purposes … the electricity infrastructure isn’t there and it’s not anticipated to be there,” Wheeler stated. “Nobody in the electricity industry will tell you that they will be able to power a state fleet consisting of only EVs by 2035.” ~ JACK MCEVOY | August 27, 2022

'Just under a year ago, the National Taxpayers Union Foundation (NTUF) published an analysis of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), controversial legislation which imposed burdensome new restrictions on businesses’ use of personal information. Our analysis highlighted the risk that the new regulations could cause significant economic harm in the form of burdensome compliance costs, but also because of the potential to create an overlapping web of state privacy rules.'

'And in our internet-based economy, small businesses use consumer data in very innocuous ways. Restaurants, for example, often collect email addresses for reservations or restaurant wifi access, then use these emails to send promotions or encourage customers to return to their establishments. That’s led to absurd situations like California restaurant patrons receiving a CCPA notice with their menus.'

'The surest path towards consumer privacy protections that minimally burden small businesses, therefore, is indeed forward-looking Congressional action that preempts overly aggressive state enforcement, sets a uniform national standard, and creates appropriate safe harbors for small operations. The longer it takes Congress to do so, the more complex the web of state privacy rules will likely become.' ~ by Andrew Wilford | November 17, 2020

'In an open letter to the California legislature, the Blockchain Association stated that the BitLicense “would make it impossible for many stablecoin issuers to operate in California due to the licensing requirements placed on these entities regardless of whether they ‘operate’ within the state. Stablecoins serve as an important bridge between traditional finance and the digital asset economy, and their success is a key prerequisite for the entire crypto ecosystem’s success.” The Blockchain Association also cautioned that New York State’s BitLicense regulation created a regulatory environment that was too challenging for startups or smaller crypto companies to survive and that “California should not repeat New York’s mistakes.” ~ Morgan Lewis | September 22, 2022

'Since the 80’s, we’ve seen California’s continued rise in influence as more and more states have followed its lead on state-level ballot initiatives.......California’s position as the progressive legislative trendsetter has spanned several decades, exemplified by the 1978 passage of Prop 13 property tax initiative), the overwhelming support for marijuana reform in the last couple decades, and the nationwide watch of the passage of Prop 22 two years ago. California’s influence in trends and future legislation and regulations as well as cultural shifts is unquestionable.' ~ JCI worldwide | Oct 12, 2021

Even though some of the influences emanating from California one may agree with -- having so much influence coming out of one state indicates there are too many people under one roof.

ADRIAN MA, BYLINE: "So the California effect is this idea that when the Golden State adopts strict regulations, those standards often end up spreading to other jurisdictions. It was a term coined by David Vogel, who's now a retired professor at the University of California, Berkeley. And David says you can especially see this effect with environmental standards."

DAVID VOGEL: "Regulating appliances so they use less energy, extensive labeling of hazardous materials in California, building codes which attempt to make buildings more energy-efficient."

MA: "And then California turned around and said to carmakers, you want to sell here, you got to sell cleaner cars. And the carmakers said, fine. So how did this one state bend these multinational corporations to its regulatory will? Well, there are a couple of reasons - economic, of course. First, California is what economists call ginormous. With a population of 39 million, it is by far the biggest state."

VOGEL: "It's such a large market so that anything which California acquires for its own product sold in its state is going to resonate among national and global companies. If you don't want to have to make separate products for California and the rest of the country, you might as well just make them according to California's standards."

~ By Darian Woods, Adrian Ma | Published September 9, 2022 at 4:07 AM CDT

'When people discuss why they're leaving California — and yes, there is an entire genre of YouTube videos on this specific topic, by the way — they do not usually cite visa policies. Some of them point out that lower-middle-class Californians pay income taxes at marginal rates higher than millionaires pay in most states (an astounding 9.1% of earnings above $61,000). Some of them mention the hostile business environment California Democrats have created, especially for those involved in freelance work and the gig economy. Some bring up rising crime and the prominent big city prosecutors who have made it worse by refusing to enforce the law.'

'Some of those leaving California blame the unnecessary and inconsistent pandemic restrictions that the state and its municipalities imposed (and that Newsom and other top leaders famously flouted). They talk about the extremely high cost of living — a result of artificial housing shortages caused by widespread NIMBYism and paralysis in their one-party Democratic legislature.' ~ Washington Examiner | September 24, 2022 06:01 AM

'Since the early 1940s, some residents of far northern California have suggested that their counties—along with a few counties in southern Oregon—separate from the two states to create a new state called Jefferson. Recently, Boards of Supervisors in Glenn, Modoc and Siskiyou Counties approved measures supporting separation from California.'

'The measure specifies that the names of the six new states will be Jefferson, North California, Central California, Silicon Valley, West California, and South California. As shown in Figure 2 (see page 4), West California—including Los Angeles—would be the most populous of the six states, with a population similar to that of Ohio. West California’s population would be less than one-third of today’s California. Jefferson—including the northernmost counties—would be the least populous of the six states with 1 out of every 40 residents of today’s California and a total population somewhat smaller than Montana’s.' ~ January 31, 2014

'In an interview with TechCrunch Draper provided five reasons why California should be split into six states:

'Despite many political observers saying that the proposal is simply impossible and will not happen, some say that it could have an impact nevertheless.'

'According to a former Republican political strategist, Dan Schnur, the proposal “could very well end up promoting a conversation about rerouting power from the state to local governments.” ~ By Alexander Joe | Published Dec 26, 2013 at 0:10 AM GMT

'The California Legislature possesses broad powers. As noted by the California Supreme Court, under the State Constitution, the Legislature “may exercise any and all legislative powers which are not expressly or by necessary implication denied to it by the Constitution.” Furthermore, through the initiative process, courts have found that the electorate’s legislative powers are “generally coextensive with the power of the Legislature to enact statutes.” If, therefore, the Legislature can pass a statute, it is generally true that the electorate may approve such a statute through the initiative process. Moreover, if there are reasonable doubts about the power of voters to approve an initiative, California courts have found it is their duty to “jealously guard” the initiative power and “resolve any reasonable doubts in favor of its exercise.”

'Four U.S. states were admitted to the union after being split from an existing state: Kentucky, Maine, Vermont, and West Virginia. The last such split—West Virginia’s split from Virginia—occurred in 1863 during the Civil War. Various efforts have been made to split up other states, including California. In 1859, the California Legislature—with the approval of voters in Southern California—consented to the separation of areas south of the Tehachapi Mountains (including Los Angeles and San Diego) into a separate territory or state. The Congress, however, never acted on this proposal, and it was never implemented.'

'The measure proposes to split the existing State of California into three new states—shown in Figure 1 (see next page)—to be named Northern California, California, and Southern California. The map in Figure 1 also shows the six most populous cities in each of the three new states.' ~ October 9, 2017

'There are several pros and cons to consider when splitting California into three separate states.'

'Splitting the states would reduce the ratio of elected representatives for the overall population to something more manageable. California, in its current state, would be large enough as an independent country to send its governor to the G7/G8 summits each year. Breaking the state into three new chunks would reduce this influence, but it would also create more equity per vote for the population and its representatives.'

'The Cal 3 idea, along with most other plans that would split California into 3 or more states, look at the concept from a north/south concept. When you look at the current state of its infrastructure, you’ll see that it is more of an east/west split that would become necessary.'

'The reality of the Cal 3 idea is that polls before the removal of the idea from the ballot showed 70% opposition to the concept of splitting up the state. Even if the vote were allowed to proceed, the likelihood of its passage was slim at best.' ~ Natalie Regoli | Nov 8, 2019

'With a complicated path to reality and the state's political and business establishment lined up firmly against it, the proposal to split California into three separate states appears to be the longest of political longshots.'

'To create a new state, Article IV of the U.S. Constitution requires "Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned." It's an open question whether that includes the consent of the new states being formed.'

'Hypothetical 'Southern California' is more politically split, but the possibility of six Democratic senators between the three states is not out of the question.'

'The bad news for Democrats is that the politically balanced 'Southern California' could go for a Republican presidential candidate. That would suddenly fracture the guaranteed 55 electoral votes that Democrats count on from the Golden State.' ~ Guy Marzorati | Jun 13, 2018

'Republicans are poised to take back the Senate in 2022. They are also poised to never relinquish it ever again--at least not for a very, very long time.' ~ Red Eagle Politics | Sep 15, 2022

If this prediction is accurate then a multi-state division of California that yields progressive or Democratic senators is tempered relative to the gains on each side of the party divide in the Senate.

'The proponent of a plan to split California into three states said a court decision to remove the measure from the November ballot “effectively put an end to this movement.” ~ BY TARYN LUNA | UPDATED AUGUST 09, 2018 7:52 PM

'Two men have launched the campaign to divide rural California from the coastal cities, and are motivated by what they call 'a decline in essential basic services such as education, law enforcement, fire protection, transportation, housing, health care, taxation, voter rights, banking, state pension systems, prisons, state parks, water resource management, home ownership and infrastructure.'

'They also say that the current California government doesn't follow the state or federal constitution.' ~ By ASSOCIATED PRESS and DAILYMAIL.COM REPORTER | PUBLISHED: 11:26 EDT, 17 January 2018 | UPDATED: 16:18 EDT, 17 January 2018

'So, since there is actually a legitimate argument to break up California (the State is utterly ungovernable with too many conflicting interests that ultimately come down to geography more than anything), I thought I'd reflect how California should actually be broken up into five states. Jefferson is based on the historic borders of the proposed Pacific Northwestern State of the Same name. Sanfrancisco includes the counties of the Bay Area. Los Angeles includes LA county and the neighboring areas that constitute the great Los Angeles Metroplex. Mojave includes the mostly desert and border counties that fuel the US military's testing and manufacturing capacity in the state, and the Rump state of California is the combination of less densely populated suburbia and farm towns that make up the Bulk of California. On the political spectrum, San Francisco would be safely Democratic, Jefferson solidly Republican, California and Mojave would be moderately conservative swing states, and Los Angeles would be Democratic but with a far better represented Republican minority.' ~ by YNot1989 | Published: Apr 19, 2018

“When over 70 percent of the people released under mandated $0 bail policies go on to commit additional crime(s), including violent offenses such as robbery and murder, there is simply no rational public safety-related basis to continue such a practice post-pandemic, especially in light of the increasing violent crime rates across California,” Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said in a Monday statement.' ~ By Jack Phillips | August 23, 2022 Updated: August 23, 2022

'The decades-long battle over California prisons continued on Thursday as federal judges ordered Gov. Jerry Brown to begin releasing inmates to reduce overcrowding in state lockups.'

'Those two cases, involving mental health and medical care, eventually formed the basis for a legal push to end overcrowding in state prisons, which in 2006 were holding twice as many inmates as they were designed for.'

'A recent USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll said California voters were split over whether prison overcrowding remained a problem, and they were wary of sacrificing public safety to reduce the inmate population.'

'But they were also willing to take more drastic steps than Brown wants to reduce the number of offenders in state prisons. Sixty-three percent said they favored released low-level, nonviolent inmates from prison early.' ~ By Chris Megerian - Los Angeles Times | Jun 20, 2013 at 2:56 pm

'But, they found, California’s prisons were at a particular disadvantage. Old and sometimes antiquated buildings, housing thousands of inmates more than they were designed to hold, created environments where social distancing and isolation of ill inmates were nearly impossible. Heating and air conditioning systems were often incapable of sufficient air exchange or not adequately filtering recirculated air, which meant that inmates and staff alike were more likely to be breathing virus-laden air.' ~ By Edward Lempinen | JULY 5, 2022

Panel 2: SOLUTIONS – A New Approach?

'Decades of tough-on-crime legislation saw California’s state prison population grow from 20,000 prior to 1980 to a peak of 175,000 in 2006. Reforms, including a 2011 court-mandated reduction of the prison population, have lowered the number of people in California prisons, and the state will close two prisons in 2021-2022. But, how many prisoners now languish in underfunded city and county jails?' ~ March 3, 2022

'Why is shoplifting so rampant? Because state law holds that stealing merchandise worth $950 or less is just a misdemeanor, which means that law enforcement probably won’t bother to investigate, and if they do, prosecutors will let it go.'

'California will allow 63,000 prisoners, out of a population of 115,000, the possibility of early release'

'California could be so much better than it is with sensible policy changes that reduce business costs, reduce housing costs, provide reliable water during drought years, prevent wildfires, and . . . reduce crime. ' ~ By: Lee Ohanian | Tuesday, August 3, 2021

'As the pandemic recedes, elected officials across deep-blue California are reacting to intense public pressure to erase the most visible signs of homelessness.'

'California’s homelessness problem has deep, gnarled roots dating back decades, but has become increasingly pronounced in recent years.'

'The state has given more than $12 billion in recent years to help local governments build housing and shelter. But it could be years before those units are built.'

'But those efforts aren’t happening fast enough for many in California, including merchants who are languishing in downtowns that are inundated with tents, tarps and other refuse from the people who have taken up residence on sidewalks and street corners.'

'Then, Los Angeles bolstered its prohibition in early August by banning camping near schools and daycares, acting at the behest of school district officials who warned children were being traumatized and threatened by people in a growing number of encampments.'

'A backlash erupted as protesters filled the City Council chambers, chanting and shouting over speakers as they accused council members of inflicting death and violence on homeless people.'

'State and local officials have feuded for decades over who bears responsibility for housing and caring for people with severe mental health illnesses — those who might have been institutionalized a half-century ago, before the national closure of state-funded psychiatric hospitals.' ~ By LARA KORTE and JEREMY B. WHITE | 09/21/2022 04:30 AM EDT

'The state government’s surplus is expected to balloon to $97.5 billion by next summer under the budget plan recently unveiled by Gov. Gavin Newsom. “No other state in American history has ever experienced a surplus as large as this,” Newsom said at a news conference.'

'Secondly, experts told me that funding is an important factor but not the only one impeding the state from once and for all ending homelessness.'

“I actually don’t believe that money is our most important challenge at this point. This is a systems failure. There is not nearly enough collaboration between neighboring governments,” Darrell Steinberg, the mayor of Sacramento, told me.'

“Why can’t we fix the prison system? Why can’t we make California’s K-12 education system the best in the world? Why can’t we, once and for all, address drought and clean water and so on and so forth?” Elliott said. “I’m making a point which is to say the crises that we face are not limited to homelessness. Homelessness may be arguably the most visible or the most in your face or the most you interact with it most viscerally on a daily basis.” ~ BY JUSTIN RAY | MAY 31, 2022 6:30 AM PT

'Year after year, environmentalists litigated and lobbied to stop efforts to clear the forests through timber harvesting, underbrush removal, and controlled burns. Meanwhile, natural fires were suppressed and the forests became more and more overgrown. The excessive biomass competed for the same water, soil, and light a healthier forest would have used, rendering all of the trees and underbrush unhealthy. It wasn’t just excess biomass that accumulated, but dried out and dead biomass.'

'In 2014, Republican members of Congress tried again to reduce the bureaucracy associated with “hazardous fuel projects” that thin out overgrown forests. True to form, the bill got nowhere thanks to environmental lobbyists who worried it would undermine the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the law that requires thorough impact assessments ahead of government decisions on public lands.'

'Few people, including the experts, bother to point out how overgrown forests reduce the water supply. But when watersheds are choked with dense underbrush competing for moisture, precipitation and runoff cannot replenish groundwater aquifers or fill up reservoirs. Instead, it’s immediately soaked up by the trees and brush. Without clearing and controlled burns, the overgrown foliage dies anyway.'

'A new activist organization in California, the “California Water for Food and People Movement,” created a Facebook group for people living in the hellscape created by misguided environmentalist zealotry.'

'If an honest history of California in the early 21st century is ever written, the verdict will be unequivocal. Forests that thrived in California for over 20 million years were allowed to become overgrown tinderboxes. And then, with stupefying ferocity, within the span of a few decades, they burned to the ground. Many of them never recovered.' ~ Edward Ring | September 10, 2020

'Fire has always been part of California's landscape. But long before the vast blazes of recent years, Native American tribes held annual controlled burns that cleared out underbrush and encouraged new plant growth.'

'Now, with wildfires raging across Northern California, joining other record-breaking fires from recent years, government officials say tackling the fire problem will mean bringing back "good fire," much like California's tribes once did.'

'Before 1800, several million acres burned every year in California due to both Indigenous burning and lightning-caused fires, far more than even the worst wildfire years today. Tribes used low-grade fires to shape the landscape, encouraging certain plants to grow both for tribal use and to attract game.'

"Fire is a very wicked problem when you have years of suppression, because the longer you don't have fire in the system, the harder it is to put it back in," says Jonathan Long, ecologist with the Forest Service's Pacific Southwest Research Station. "So what we're trying to do is get these footholds."

'Still, it's early days in developing these partnerships for many tribes, particularly after a long history of inequality created and reinforced by the government. Many California regional air regulators require burn permits over concerns about smoke and air pollution. Some counties offer special permits for tribes to facilitate their burns, but others don't.' ~ August 24, 2020 9:00 AM ET

It would appear that since the 1990s Californians have been more incentivized to get recalls on the ballot.

'The only time a governor was recalled was 2003, when Democrat Gray Davis was removed and voters replaced him with Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger.'

'Cox sought to gain attention by campaigning with a 1,000-pound (450-kilogram) Kodiak bear, which he said represented the need for "beastly" changes in the state, and also is calling for a historic-sized tax cut.'

'Newsom, who was elected in a 2018 landslide, sees the recall as an attack on California’s progressive policies. Democrats say the effort to remove him is being driven by far-right extremists and supporters of former President Donald Trump. The recall is backed by state and national Republicans, but organizers argue they have a broad-based coalition, including many independents and Democrats.'

'Newsom’s popularity was tumbling and he appeared imperiled, with widespread unrest over long-running school and business closures. Many business owners were infuriated by what they saw as Newsom’s heavy-handed restrictions that had some open and close several times. Others rebelled against mandatory mask-wearing rules.'

'California is one of the country’s most heavily Democratic states. Democratic voters outnumber Republicans by nearly 2-to-1, and the party controls every statewide office and dominates the Legislature and congressional delegation.' ~ By MICHAEL R. BLOOD | Published September 3, 2021

'There is increasing evidence of vote fraud in the California recall election.'

'Torrance, California Police found 300 recall ballots and multiple California drivers licenses in a felon’s car.'

'California Governor Gavin Newsom calls this a “extension of the Big Lie.” "We're four days out, the election hasn't even happened, and now they're all claiming election fraud,” says Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Newsom’s wife. “I think it's important to highlight that.”

'Support among whites and blacks is virtually identical. It’s hard to see what’s racist about voter ID laws.'

'The only groups that don’t support these identification rules are those who believe that preventing cheating in elections is “not very important” (23%) and those who are “unsure” of their level of education (28%).'

'If concern about voter fraud is delusional, it is a delusion shared by most of the world. The difference is that the rest of the world has broad agreement across parties to prevent it. America is the outlier.' ~ John R. Lott, Jr. | Posted: Sep 14, 2021 12:01 AM

'George Gascon’s pro-criminal agenda has turned Los Angeles into a NIGHTMARE. Criminals feel emboldened, residents unsafe, and victims abandoned.'

'Gascon REFUSES to prosecute juveniles as adults under any circumstances, even rape, murder or other heinous crimes, even if days shy of turning 18.'

'Please read the following statement from attorney Marian Thompson, whose legal team is assisting our efforts:

“In a few short days, through the careful examination of rejected signatures by a group of volunteer attorneys, we have seen many signatures that were rejected under various categories, that were clearly wrongfully rejected by Dean Logan’s examiners. We will continue our inspection of each rejected signature in the following weeks for the purposes of determining whether the recall examination process itself was flawed, in whole or in part, and to identify wrongfully rejected signatures in preparation for any potential legal challenges.”

'The much-maligned DA — whose woke policies allowing violent criminals to remain free have been blamed for rising crime in the City of Angels and neighboring areas — acknowledged the decision Monday, saying he was “grateful to move forward from this attempted political power grab-rest.”

“The over half a million signatures are in addition to 37 cities voting no confidence in the District Attorney, and over 98% of Gascón’s own prosecutors supporting the recall.”

“Somehow George Gascon will continue in his role of releasing VIOLENT CRIMINALS onto our streets and making Californians UNSAFE,” Senate candidate James Bradley tweeted.' ~ by Lee Brown and Marjorie Hernandez | August 16, 2022 8:48am

COMMENTS: Anna1452 -- 'Doesn't pass the smell test. Each disqualified signature should be reviewed independently by a non partisan. I heard less than 1% of postal votes were rejected by LA County in the Newsom recall ballot, compared to around 20% for this recall petition, and that no independent monitors were permitted to observe the count. Election integrity in California is now almost on a par with that of North Korea.'

“Unfortunately, certain local politicians, including many in California continue to put politics over public safety. Instead of fulfilling our shared mission to protect our communities, they would rather play politics with the law by enacting so-called sanctuary city policies to the detriment of our country’s safety,”

'The immigrants that were arrested are said to have been previously convicted of homicide, sexual assault, and other serious crimes.' ~ K. Winters | October 8, 2020

'Despite federal law (the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996) requiring local government to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security, the California Values Act, or the law more commonly referred to as the “state sanctuary law,” went into effect on January 1, 2018. This law directs all counties and municipalities in California to excise what are commonly known as "sanctuary” policies. Although the term “sanctuary policy” is not strictly defined, these policies generally direct public employees, including law enforcement officers, not to notify the federal government when the immigration status of residents in their communities might be subject to question.'

'A federal court ruled Monday that California’s Assembly Bill 32, which bans private prisons and immigrant detention centers, is unconstitutional.'

'The 11-member panel from the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that the 2019 bill violates the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, which prohibits states from overruling federal laws.'

'As the Los Angeles Times reports Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen found that AB32 “would override the federal government’s decision, pursuant to discretion conferred by Congress, to use private contractors to run its immigration detention centers. California can not exert this level of control.” ~ By Danny Hernandez | September 27, 2022

'The Office for Civil Rights, a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, noted this week in a press release that it has found that the “State of California violated the federal conscience protection laws known as the Weldon and Coats-Snowe Amendments” by passing the Reproductive FACT Act, which attempted to force pregnancy centers to essentially advertise abortion on behalf of the state by “post[ing] notices stating that California provides free or low-cost family planning services and abortion.” ~ January 23, 2019 , 07:32am

'The legislation is geared toward out-of-state residents, especially those who live in red states where medical and chemical sex-change treatments are restricted. It includes a number of provisions to shield California’s medical industry from prosecution, including one that prohibits state agencies and law enforcement organizations from enforcing subpoenas by other states regarding where, when, and on whom sex-change treatments are performed. In other words, the law allows California doctors to alter children’s bodies permanently, regardless of parental consent, without fear of consequence. This is exploitation, plain and simple.'

“We may have limits under the U.S. Constitution,” he said, “but we are going to go right up to the edge of what we’re able to do to protect them and say, ‘Unless we are absolutely forced to send you back, we are not going to send you back.’ ~ By Kaylee McGhee White | October 03, 2022 02:49 PM

'According to the World Bank’s Container Port Performance Index, California ports rank near the bottom in terms of global port performance. Out of 351 total ports, the latest figures rank Los Angeles at 337, Long Beach at 341, and Oakland at 334 - far behind most ports in developing countries and those on the Atlantic Seaboard, the researchers noted before concluding: “The recent performance of California ports has been abysmal.”

“If port inefficiencies persist, the ramifications for California agriculture will extend beyond the immediate loss of foreign sales, as importers begin to view California as an unreliable supplier of agricultural products,” Carter noted.' ~ By Brad Hooker | 01/05/22 6:15 AM

'Truck drivers choked traffic at the Oakland, California, seaport on Monday protesting a state law that makes it harder for independent contractors to transport goods and could limit labor at the state's already clogged seaports, threatening to worsen the nation's pandemic-fueled supply chain jams.'

'The law, known as AB5, or the "gig worker" law, sets tougher standards for classifying workers as independent contractors. Independent truckers who now operate under the authority and insurance of companies that hire them for jobs would be shouldered with the hefty costs and red tape of taking that on when the law is enacted.'

'Industry groups representing roughly 20,000 Los Angeles and Oakland port truckers, including the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, made an unsuccessful bid to convince California Governor Gavin Newsom to delay enforcement of the law.' ~ By Carlos Barria and Lisa Baertlein | July 18, 2022, at 8:48 p.m.

'Water supply problems for California communities are more related to water use and water distribution than a lack of water, though the historic dryness has certainly exacerbated the stress on the system. The somewhat good news is that a lot of the state’s water challenges are still human-induced and can be addressed by the decisions and changes we make.'

'The damming and diversion of rivers to support California agriculture has sacrificed sustainable food systems such as salmon for preferred Western farming styles and crops.'

'And while some farmers grow fruits and vegetables that end up on the tables of Americans, others become millionaires by internationally exporting valuable commodities like almonds and rice grown with taxpayer-subsidized water.'

'It’s worth noting the early 1900s decision makers who advocated for the damming of California embraced utopian visions of transforming arid regions of California into real-life Gardens of Eden for white family farmers. Our water system’s foundations were likely not based on sound science or economics, even by the standards of the time.'

'But for decades, California has lagged behind other states in regulating groundwater pumping. A new law requires that groundwater restrictions be put in place by 2030, but many are skeptical about the process and whether too much damage will be done before it takes effect.'

'As I’ve written about previously in Shasta Scout, the old California water rights system plays a significant role in how water is allocated and who receives it. But the doctrine that governs these water rights was not developed to promote equity, water quality, getting water to communities who need it the most, or even achieving efficient economic goals.' ~ BY MARC DADIGAN | MARCH 17, 2022

'Diener, a California water expert and farmer, has been warning steadily that water is unnecessarily being let out to sea as the state faces a normal dry year.'

“Before our magnificent reservoir projects were built, California never had a steady and reliable supply of water. Now water is being managed as if those reserves don’t exist, by emptying the collected water from storage to the sea, rather than saving it for our routinely dry years,” Diener says. “Our water projects were designed to be managed for the long term providing a minimum five year supply, but California has now put us on track to have a man made drought crisis every time we don’t have a wet season.”

'Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recent $5.1 billion drought response package will not be used to create water abundance either. Instead, about $1 billion dollars will be used to pay off now unaffordable water bills that were made too expensive by intentionally creating water scarcity. When water restrictions are imposed, supplier revenues fall. They have fixed costs to deliver water and must raise rates as a result.' ~ By Katy Grimes | May 21, 2021 2:20 am

'California can no longer rely on the winter snowpack to provide a reliable source of water throughout the year. We need to store water when we have precipitation and deliver that water for environmental, residential, business, and agricultural use when needed.'

'The operations of California’s water system also need to be improved to provide more flexibility for environmental and water supply purposes and more regulatory certainty for water agencies and their customers. The operational inefficiencies have resulted in curtailed water deliveries and resulted in rate increases for residential and business users.'

"...Californians, nearly 70 percent “don’t feel that government is doing enough to combat the drought.” — PPIC poll (July, 2022)

'The prospect of blackouts underscores how grids have become vulnerable in the face of extreme weather as they transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. California has aggressively closed natural-gas power plants in recent years, leaving the state increasingly dependent on solar farms that go dark late in the day as demand for electricity peaks. At the same time, the state is enduring a severe drought, sapping hydropower production.'

'The fight to keep power flowing in California is complicated by wildfires near Los Angeles and San Diego that are threatening transmission lines and power plants' ~ BYBRIAN K. SULLIVAN, JOE RYAN AND BLOOMBERG | September 5, 2022 at 2:43 PM EDT

'Can the California grid handle the charging challenges for the EVs the state is promoting to be on the grid? The knee-jerk reaction to going green as fast as possible has the potential to crash California’s already fragile economy. No one’s even talking about the load it’s going to put on the current grid. The silence is deafening.'

'In California alone, intermittent electricity from low power density renewables is expensive to consumers. It has already contributed to California household users paying more than 50% more, and industrial users are paying more than 100% more than the national average for electricity.'

'In addition to the huge investments at the electric service stations, utility companies will have to spend gazillions of dollars building a new grid or billions to upgrade the grid to prevent it from crashing, which will further drive up the cost of electricity for everyone just so a few elites can drive Teslas and the like.'

'Adding EV charging requirements onto the grid while simultaneously removing continuously uninterruptable electricity generation by nuclear and natural gas from the grid, and the expected difficulties of finding huge acreage for renewable farms, may be California’s silent and secretive formula for disaster to the economy.' ~ By CFACT Ed | March 28th, 2019

“Refinery issues in California are leading to increases in areas supplied by the state’s refineries, including areas of Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and of course, California.”

'Assemblymember Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, responded to news of the increase by noting on Tuesday that the Democratic-controlled Legislature has rejected a plan to suspend the state's gas tax, which is now 53 cents per gallon.'

“The Legislature had an opportunity to provide real relief to Californians by suspending the gas tax,” Kiley said in a statement. “Instead, the Supermajority opted to create a do-nothing Select Committee as an attempt at political cover. Now our residents are paying the price.”

'About 23 million Californians will receive what Gov. Gavin Newsom has called an "inflation relief" payment at the end of October.' ~ Daniel Macht | Updated: 5:33 PM PDT Sep 13, 2022

'California, so the gas tax itself is higher,” Sanjay Varshney, a professor of finance at California State University, Sacramento told The Hill. “Number two, California environmental and emission laws are tougher, so the mix required [for] gasoline tends to be more expensive.”

'Another key factor is that the state is a fuel island, or a location that does not receive any fuel through interstate pipelines, according to Kevin Slagle, vice president of strategic communications at the Western States Petroleum Association. The state’s fuel supplies are either produced in-state or transported there by ship or truck, costlier methods that are passed on to consumers. '

“We’re just not being issued permits,” he said, “so a fix we could see is … let’s get the permits offered to us, get them in the field, let us produce, so that a few months down the line, we’ve started to increase production.”

'That surcharge, Borenstein said, appeared shortly after the 2015 explosion of an ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance, Calif., which caused prices in the state to surge relative to the rest of the nation, and which remained after the refinery came back online.'

“We also have a cap-and-trade program, which these days is adding about 3 cents. And we also have a low carbon fuel standard which these days is adding about 14 cents,” he added' ~ BY ZACK BUDRYK | 03/17/22 3:52 PM ET

'The move by the California Air Resources Board to have all new cars, pickup trucks and SUVs be electric or hydrogen by 2035 is likely to reshape the U.S. auto market, which gets 10% of its sales from the nation's most populous state.'

“It’s going to be very hard getting to 100%,” said Daniel Sperling, a board member and founding director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis. “You can’t just wave your wand, you can’t just adopt a regulation — people actually have to buy them and use them."

'Washington state and Massachusetts already have said they will follow California’s lead and many more are likely to — New York and Pennsylvania are among 17 states that have adopted some or all of California’s tailpipe emission standards that are stricter than federal rules.'

'The oil industry believes California is going too far. It's the seventh-largest oil-producing state and shouldn’t wrap its entire transportation strategy around a vehicle market powered by electricity, said Tanya DeRivi, vice president for climate policy with the Western States Petroleum Association, an industry group.'

“These regulations are a big step backwards for working families and small businesses," said Gema Gonzalez Macias of the California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce.' ~ By KATHLEEN RONAYNE | Aug. 25, 2022, at 8:54 p.m.

'Mills said that because existing gas cars will be allowed to be driven and resold under the plan, used car prices are likely to skyrocket. Meanwhile, the demand for EVs is expected to outpace supply, mostly related to the costs and ability to mine resources needed to make EV batteries, leading to higher prices for those as well.'

'Mills also has doubts that the transition to EVs will benefit the environment as much as some say. Mills points out that mines are located outside the United States, meaning an increase in exporting both jobs and pollution to other countries. Also, the mining industry uses oil and coal in its operations, meaning “the emissions you save by not driving a conventional car, half of them are wiped out just building the battery.” ~ Published on September 21, 2022

'Until 2010, the state’s population had been expanding steadily for over a century, powered by booms in agriculture, gold, and international immigration. Its superstar status really took off during the Great Depression, when it overtook other growing states and never looked back.'

'51 moves in for 100 moves out. That reflects what we’re seeing in other polls, that more than half of California residents are considering a move out of state.'

'It could be that California’s high cost of living makes multiple other states attractive for those looking to relocate. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, residents moving out tend to be less affluent than incoming residents, suggesting that high housing costs and taxes could be the primary factors in the exodus.' ~ Joe Robison | Last Updated: Sep 26, 2022

'Maps of the exit from California to other states demonstrate how many people are leaving the politically blue state in favor of more conservative areas.'

'Data on immigration between US states in 2021 show California and New York, which employed some of the harshest COVID mandates in America, lost by far the most residents, while Florida and Texas, which employed some of the least mandates, gained the most.'

'While some considered relocation the answer, others considered Calexit to be the answer, with Investopedia reporting that the Secession of California became a topic of conversation following former President Donald Trump’s victory in 2016.' ~ By Savannah Hulsey Pointer | February 24, 2022

'Its once-beautiful cities are now full of homeless camps — and, in San Francisco, of excrement. Decades of mismanagement has led to water shortages, power outages and wildfires. Thanks to faddish policing, crime has gone through the roof. Everywhere, the cost of living is becoming unbearable.'

'And the culture? Once upon a time, California was a relaxed, happy place: “Take It Easy,” sang the Eagles, Los Angeles’ most famous band. Now, almost every high-strung fad in America — our current obsession with pronouns, our preoccupation with “safety,” no-questions-asked sex-change operations for children — seems to have originated in the state. It’s a mess.' ~ By Charles C.W. Cooke | September 24, 2022 8:01am (Updated)

'Thanks to the blessings of decentralization, life can vary greatly in America depending on where you sit. Those differences are growing into a chasm of philosophical and practical contrasts between two basic models for the American future. Call them the California way and the Florida way.'

'Florida is America’s freest state, according to a Cato Institute survey: No. 1 in fiscal freedom, No. 1 in educational freedom. Cato dubs California one of the least free states and flat-out dubs it “the most cronyist state in the union,” meaning government and its chosen allies work to milk the public purse for all they can.'

'A 2016 survey gave Florida a grade of “A” for providing online access to how it spends its taxpayer dollars; California got an “F” and was the worst-scoring state.'

'It wasn’t long ago that America looked to California for guidance; even Ronald Reagan implicitly promised to spread the California way across the nation. Now California is a model only for dysfunction, and if Newsom attempts to follow Reagan’s path to the White House, he’ll be as much of a punchline as his predecessor, Jerry Brown, the man who first started to steer California on its present heartbreaking path.' ~ By Kyle Smith | July 8, 2021 8:11pm (Updated)

'Some states shine in health care. Some soar in education. Some excel in both – or in much more. The Best States ranking of U.S. states draws on thousands of data points to measure how well states are performing for their citizens. In addition to health care and education, the metrics take into account a state’s economy, its roads, bridges, internet and other infrastructure, its public safety, the fiscal stability of state government, and the opportunity it affords its residents.'

'More weight was accorded to some state measures than others, based on a survey of what matters most to people. Health care and education were weighted most heavily.'

You can also compare the states by specific categories below the general rankings table.

'Curious how the different states compare when it comes to cost of living?' ~ Written by: Casey Bond | Reviewed by: John McCormickquality | Updated on September 9, 2022

'California has the nation's third-highest cost of living index at 142.2.'

'You will learn about state taxes that affect retirement income such as sales tax, retirement income tax and property taxes. We’ve provided details about tax credits, exemptions and tax relief programs. You will also find state tax rates for inheritance and estate taxes and retirement-related tax breaks in each state profile.'

'State tax rates and rules for income, sales, gas, property, cigarette, and other taxes that impact middle-class families.'

Poverty rate of states by graph and list further down page.

'Let’s check the 50 US States Ranked by Poverty'

'Below you’ll find a table that includes all 50 states and their respective poverty rates from 2014 to 2019, and the change over those five years.' ~ Andrew DePietro | Nov 4, 2021 03:27am EDT

List towards bottom of page gives states by their homeless per capita.

~ compiled by? Nick Johnson | January 26, 2021

Clickable map of the states at the top puts homeless stats for a clicked state in a new page to the right. Clicking another state on the map replaces the new page's contents with the next clicked state's stats.

'Nearly 40% of law enforcement agencies nationwide did not submit any data in 2021 to the recently revised FBI crime statistics collection program, leaving a large information gap for certainty. will be used by politicians when midterm election campaigns are already dominated by public concerns about a rise in violent crime'

'The gap includes the nation's two largest cities by population, New York and Los Angeles, as well as most agencies in five of the six most populous states: California, New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Florida.'

For what it's worth there is an interactive graph for all states concerning crime in general and then options to display violent or non-violent crime all at the near bottom part of the page.

'The FBI collects crime data through the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program.'

Open two instances of the site in your browser for California and Florida in order to compare their crime stats side-by-side.