Name: How a San Jose-inspired bill could uncover public records by The Podlight
Duration: 13 min 23 s
Description: A successful lawsuit against San Jose and its former mayor brought by San José Spotlight and First Amendment Coalition has inspired a new state bill, SB 908, that would ensure compliance with California's public records law and bolster government transparency across the state. Editor Nick Preciado learns more from Brittney Barsotti of the California News Publishers Association.

Santa Cruz Local recently published a three-part investigation into how public money is spent on homeless services in Santa Cruz County. In today’s episode, we’ll discuss why we took on this investigation and several of the key takeaways from our reporting. We also hear from some key leaders in homeless services management. 

Read the transcript with links to our related stories.
santacruzlocal.org/2023/08/02/podcast-how-homeless-services-money

• Read part one “How homeless services money has been spent in Santa Cruz County”: santacruzlocal.org/2023/05/05/homeless-services-money-part-1

• Read part two “Money sources, constraints and problems with homeless services spending in Santa Cruz County”: santacruzlocal.org/2023/05/05/homeless-services-money-part-2

• Read part three “Is homeless services spending effective in Santa Cruz County?”: santacruzlocal.org/2023/05/05/homeless-services-money-part-3

• Listen to Santa Cruz Local podcast Ep. 96 “How Santa Cruz County could solve chronic homelessness”: santacruzlocal.org/2021/12/17/podcast-96

Ep 104 How homeless services money is spent in Santa Cruz County 8.2.23

Co-host Nick Preciado sits down with the county's top political and administrative leaders -- Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors President Susan Ellenberg and CEO James Williams -- to discuss the state of the county's mental health crisis.

The state of the county: Mental health

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San Jose broke transparency laws. What's next?

San Jose is seeing a significantly low return of office workers to downtown and one of the highest office vacancy rates in its history. The lack of foot traffic is hurting downtown businesses. What's driving this trend and how can office workers be lured to come back? Co-host Nick Preciado chats with Alex Stettinski, CEO of the San Jose Downtown Association.

Why San Jose office workers aren't coming back

The end of an era: Silicon Valley Congresswoman Anna Eshoo is retiring after three decades in Congress. The veteran Democrat reflects on her decision and legacy. Plus: Political analyst Larry Gerston predicts some key issues that could shape the highly-competitive race to replace her.

Rep. Anna Eshoo reflects on retirement; race to replace her heats up

A successful lawsuit against San Jose and its former mayor brought by San José Spotlight and First Amendment Coalition has inspired a new state bill, SB 908, that would ensure compliance with California's public records law and bolster government transparency across the state. Editor Nick Preciado learns more from Brittney Barsotti of the California News Publishers Association.

How a San Jose-inspired bill could uncover public records

Election Day is here in California. With Silicon Valley voters headed to the polls this week in the March primary election, co-host Nick Preciado sat down with two political observers and experts -- Larry Gerston and Garrick Percival -- for their predictions and analysis.

Primary election 2024: Predictions

Cupertino spent more than $100,000 from a fund for low-income housing on attorneys to defend itself against housing-related lawsuits, San José Spotlight first reported. Editor Nick Preciado sits down with reporter Annalise Freimarck who broke the story to learn more.

Inside Cupertino's move to misallocate housing funds

Despite ballooning costs and delays, BART's much-anticipated extension in Silicon Valley is inching forward as pre-construction work begins on the transit agency's Santa Clara stop. Editor Nick Preciado digs into the update with reporter B. Sakura Cannesta, who covers Santa Clara and Sunnyvale.

A closer look at BART's extension to Santa Clara

The Podlight is produced by San José Spotlight, the city's award-winning nonprofit news organization dedicated to independent political and business reporting. Hosted by editor Nick Preciado and senior reporter Joseph Geha, our show features in-depth conversations with South Bay leaders, lawmakers and influencers about policy, politics and government, delving into critical issues such as housing, technology, business, homelessness, education and development.

How a San Jose-inspired bill could uncover public records

The Podlight

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