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During his State of the State address, Gov. Jerry Brown laid out his vision of investing in public infrastructure, reinvesting in public schools and universities, assuring a safe and reliable water supply, and shifting toward cleaner energy. To accomplish these goals, the governor called on state leaders to engage in a number of necessary actions including meaningful regulatory reform, with particular focus on modernizing the 40-year-old California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA.

More than two-thirds of California business leaders see the state as an extraordinarily difficult state in which to operate, a new survey by the California Business Roundtable has found.

There has always been a certain level of competitiveness among the States. Of course, the football rivalry between Michigan and Ohio State is legendary. But, on a more serious note, economic competitiveness goes all the way back to colonial days.

California is widely viewed as one of the most anti-business states in the nation, bristling with high taxes and onerous regulations that drive companies away. The state also is seen as a leading generator of high-paying jobs in growing industries, attracting more than half of the nation’s venture capital investment.

Comparing California to other states has become a common exercise among politicians, academicians and in the media.

Heralding continued strength in the housing market locally and nationwide, home prices in major California cities jumped considerably year-over-year, according to data released Tuesday.

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Jerry Brown spoke only two sentences about streamlining environmental regulations in his State of the State address. But they inspired reformers to cheer.

Most people would agree that if a school, hospital or road project has been subjected to extensive environmental review and met all federal, state and local environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act and the Clean Air Act, the project should go forward without being sued for purported environmental reasons. Unfortunately, today, these projects are being delayed and face increased costs – many times to taxpayers – or killed altogether because of abusive litigation that has nothing to do with the environment.

The gap in income between rich and poor people and blacks and whites has grown in California over the last 20 years, according to a report from nonprofit Next 10 in San Francisco.

Company: Amazon.com Inc.CA Net Job Gain/Loss: 1000Reason: Expand, From Out of StateCity/Region Losing Jobs: Seattle, WACity/Region Gaining Jobs: Tracy, CA

California’s core environmental protection law, a 43-year-old statute frequently denounced by developers and business interests as a tangle of red tape, is on a Capitol hit list once again.

In his State of the State address Thursday, Gov. Jerry Brown reiterated his pitch to protect California’s water supply. But in a speech lawmakers repeatedly interrupted with applause, Brown’s plea to spend billions on water elicited silence. He was speaking to a joint session of the legislature, but his message is really for consumers — and the agencies that supply water to them.

After adding jobs at a steady clip through most of last year, California’s employment engine lost steam in December as employers reduced payrolls by 17,500 net positions.

Battle-scarred and bullet-hole-riddled over the 42 years since Gov. Ronald Reagan signed it into law, the California Environmental Quality Act likely will receive its first major overhaul in the legislative session that began Jan. 7.

Federal officials awarded California’s new health insurance exchange a $674-million grant, providing money for a crucial marketing campaign aimed at millions of uninsured consumers.